Stardust
by Satashi
Summary: Follow a new farmer as she discovers magic and wonders in Stardew Valley. From a strange purple haired girl wanting to become an adventurer, to an artist wanting to express herself, love starts to bloom. Join Kim as she learns more about herself, and the townspeople around her. A complete re-imagining of the Valley.
1. Chapter 1

Author's notes:

Welcome to the first chapter of my Stardew Valley fanfic. My goal with this story is to try and flesh out the characters in a semi-realistic way while keeping true to what they were meant to be. I chose a first-person standpoint for this because I feel that Concerned Ape wanted us to enjoy his game by projecting ourselves onto our farmer. I didn't want to ruin that by constantly having my character's name dictate the actions, so I'm attempting to avoid using her name as much as possible. This first chapter is the standard introduction/set up, so please forgive the necessary getting off the bus intro. I do believe that if you stick with it, you'll find yourself enjoying the story along with me. If not, please let me know why so I can consider it in future writing. I haven't decided which person will be the main love interest for this story, so if you would like your favorite considered, leave a comment. Male or Female doesn't matter, I'm happy with both!

* * *

Some things never change. I remember thinking this every year when I visited my grandfather on his farm. The smell of the valley in spring, the brightness of the sun, the way the breeze was warm but still had a wisp of cool air mixed into it as well. All of these things came back to me as I stepped off the dank bus and onto the grass. It had been years since I had last been here, but the emotions and memories long forgotten still managed to tug at my heart strings. I suddenly missed my grandfather again, but the feeling soon turned to pride as I retrieved my huge bag from the side compartment of the bus. The weight of it reminded me why I had come here. I was going to change myself for the better, and my late grandfather was the one who had given me this chance.

 **Stardust**

 **By:**

 **Satashi**

"Hello there!" The voice came from an older gentleman with a gray mustache. He was walking over to me with a smile plastered on his face. "You must be Kim, I've been waiting for you."

"Mayor Lewis," I realized. I had spoken with him on the phone when finalizing the legal work needed to accept the property given to me. "Yes, hello," I stumbled a bit and my bag slipped from my shoulder and crashed to the ground next to me. I extended my hand to him to make it look like it was on purpose, but I could tell from the chuckle he gave that my plan had failed. "Nice to meet you," I finished lamely. I had always been a little clumsy, just enough for people to point it out, but not get used to it.

"Welcome to Pelican Town." His voice was sincere and honest, and his smile stayed as he shook my outstretched hand. "I was good friends with your grandfather. I recall him having his granddaughter over in the summers. I do believe we've met, but you're hardly a tiny little thing anymore… Ah, there I go again. Come, come, let me show you the way."

Holstering my bag once again, I started to walk with him. I heard a small rustling next to my feet and looked down, seeing something scuttle into the bushes. "I think I startled a squirrel."

"Oh you will find plenty of them here." Lewis continued on. "The old farm is a bit away, I hope you have the energy to carry that large bag of yours."

"I'm fine." I was by no means weak or dainty, but my bag did contain everything I had decided to take with me, minus a few larger things that would come by mail later. This, however, didn't help the fact that we had been chatting while walking for what seemed like a full hour. I was about to ask how much farther we had to go when we reached the top of a hill. A semi-flat area took up most of the real estate, save for a small house next to the drive way. "There it is…" I spoke aloud, my throat going somewhat dry at the sight.

"There it is," Lewis confirmed. The weeds were almost as tall as I was in some spots. The fields of crops that I recalled from my youth were all gone, transformed into wild trees, plants, and massive patches of grass. "I'll leave you here." The mayor nodded at me. "You should come to town when you're able, it's not every day we get a new resident."

"I'll do that." I still couldn't get over the dramatic change before me, and my voice reflected that. "I'll need a bit to settle in."

"You have power and running water, I made sure of that." The words made me feel a lot better. "Well now, you get settled."

"Thank you." I shook his hand one more time and then turned back to the farm... to my new home.

The walk to the front door gave me time to take in the house. I remember it from my youth, although faintly. A small two bedroom house with a shed nearby, made from logs instead of brick. The scent of the lumber used to make it was still there, although worn and coated with pollen and dust. The last time I had reached for this door, my arm was reaching upwards. Now, years later, I was putting a key into the slot. I heard a soft click and I pushed the door inwards.

There was a fireplace in the living room with a large mirror over it. Although dust stained, I could still make out my appearance in it. Long brown hair, held into a high ponytail by a scrunchie. My shirt was casual, chosen for comfort to combat the long bus ride I had to endure. Paired with a set of skinny jeans and sneakers, I looked positively average. I tore my brown eyes away from the reflection and took in the rest of my new home.

The cabin was almost empty, save for a dining room table that separated the kitchen from the living room, as well as a huge tube style television sitting on a stand that didn't look like it would hold the massive weight anymore. A tiny couch was in front of it, and a door lead to a bedroom nearby. Across the hallway there was another door to a guest bedroom and a bathroom for the house to share. "Home sweet home."

* * *

It was in the afternoon before I allowed myself to take a break from cleaning. I was sweating, despite having the old air conditioner running full blast. The poor thing was trying it's hardest, but it just wasn't enough for me. One thing the city life had ingrained in my head was a cool temperature at home.

The inside of the house was looking a lot better. I had decided on starting with the main entrance and living room, cleaning it to the point where it was passable, or at least livable. I needed a break from this, though, and went outside to look around at the farm. The area was just as bad as I first though, being completely over ridden by weeds and vegetation. "What am I going to do with this?" I asked myself out loud.

Walking through the field, I tried to recall the huge stalks of corn placed in neat rows, the strawberries cluttering the ground with just enough room to walk between and pick them. I remembered parsnips, turnips, leeks, and potatoes. I also remembered the grass. Huge blades of grass that were several feet tall, thick and perfect for cutting. This grass was beyond that, though, and I didn't feel the need to run through it like I had used to when younger.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed some of the grass was shaking. Stopping, I tilted my head to the side a bit, watching closer. Just as I had thought, the grass swayed violently to one side. A light glimpse of purple appeared near the top of the grass, swishing through the gaps. Curious, I walked closer. Listening to the sounds, I heard heavy breathing and slashing sounds, almost like grass was being cut.

As I got closer, I realized the purple I had seen earlier was actually hair. It belonged to a girl, and went just past her shoulders. She had on a black tank top with a light blue sleeveless jacket. A matching pair of dark jeans covered her legs, finally ending with what looked like boots on her feet. What got my attention the most, however, was the blade she was wielding. The girl had a double edged standard style one handed sword. She was focused on an imaginary enemy in front of her and she swung again and again, battling her unseen foe.

I was debating if I should try to sneak away before she saw me, not knowing if she was crazy or not, but the fact she was on my farm made me want to confront her, at least find out what the deal was. I had just opened my mouth to speak when she let out a battle cry and spun around, her sword heading straight for me. Instinctively I moved back, quickly avoiding the wild lash. My shocked yell made the girl stop dead in her tracks and look at me in fear. "Oh crap!" She exclaimed, almost dropping her sword. "A-are you okay!?"

"I'm fine." I managed out, looking at her with wide eyes. I felt a little tingling on my nose and touched it, feeling something sticky on my fingers. My eyes went down and I saw a tiny smear of blood on them. She had just managed to nick the tip of my nose.

"I'm so sorry!" I could tell from her voice that she honestly meant it. "I-I was just… oh you're bleeding! Stupid, stupid, stupid! I should have paid attention, I-"

"I'm fine," I said again. I luckily had my cleaning rag still stuffed in my back pocket so I took it out and touched it to my nose to help stop the bleeding. The cleaning chemicals on the rag instantly burnt the cut and I winced.

"What are you doing out here?" She asked me, sheathing her sword in the holder on her back.

"I live here," I responded, looking at the rag to see it was getting rather covered in my blood.

"You live…oh!" She looked flustered. "That's today! The new farmer!"

"Nice to meet you too." I moved the rag to a dry spot and winced again as I touched my cut. The girl moved closer, but hesitated before reaching out to look at my nose. "Really, it's just a nick. Face cuts bleed like crazy from the smallest things."

"…True…" She didn't look convinced so I moved the rag to show her. "Oh… good, I can't even see it… Uhm… I'm Abigail?"

"Hi Abigail, I'm Kim." I offered my hand, which she shook carefully. "Mind if I ask why you're swinging a sword around on my farm?"

"…Practicing," Abigail told me hesitantly. "I'm sorry, this was the best place to go to be alone. I've always come out here to explore the fields and get away from my family when they get annoying."

"I see." I could accept that. I had just arrived that day after all. "Well I don't mind. I haven't really started anything yet." Looking over my shoulder, I felt my heart sink a little at the state of things. "I have a lot to do before I can use this whole field…"

Abigail stayed quiet for a moment before answering me. "Thanks, but this is yours now, I shouldn't trespass." She was clearly still shaken at having almost decapitated me, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't.

"Don't worry about it, I have quick reflexes." I smiled at her and could tell she eased up a bit.

"Hey, tell you what." She put her hands on her hips. "As an apology for trying to kill you, how about you stop by my place sometime and I can give you something to help you out on your farm?" When I looked at her doubtingly, she elaborated. "My dad owns the local general store. We have all kinds of seeds, materials, tools, and lots of other things. Come on by and I'll make sure you get something to help you get going!"

I couldn't turn down a deal like that. "Thank you, I definitely will. Where at in town are you?"

The purple haired laughed. "You can't miss us, I promise." Looking satisfied with herself now, she smiled at me. "I should get back before I cause any more damage here. Sorry again."

"Forgiven." I meant it and she seemed to catch that. "Nice meeting you, Abigail. Maybe we'll look back at this moment in the future and laugh it up."

"That'd be fun." She walked past me and hesitated, looking over her shoulder. "Hey, Kim?"

"Yes?"

"Could you keep this between us? The sword I mean?"

I blinked. I knew monsters and spirits were more active out in the rural areas and lesser developed towns, but had always heard great stories of Adventurer Guilds and their proud members who hunted them. "Okay?"

"Thanks." With no other explanation, she waved again at me and headed off.

' _Weird_ ,' I thought to myself as I watched her go. It had been an interesting day so far for sure. Checking my nose again, I found it still trying to bleed through the cut that I probably wouldn't even be able to feel if not for the wood cleaner and polish I kept dabbing on it like an idiot.

Upon entering my house again, I heard what sounded like a few small animals scatter from the living room. ' _Great,'_ I sighed out. ' _Looks like I have rats too…'_


	2. Chapter 2

Waking up was never really an issue for me. When my alarm went off, I generally reached to cut it off and sat up. A few moments later and I was already heading for the bathroom to get ready for the day, taking it all in stride without much dallying around. Today, however, I woke up a little groggy and a lot sore. My whole body ached from the hours spent cleaning yesterday, and something else that hit me as soon as I tried to get out of bed: hunger. I had gone most of the day on nothing but some snacks I had brought for the bus ride, and my stomach was protesting violently for it.

 **Stardust II**

 **By: Satashi**

I didn't expect there to be literally no place to eat nearby. There were no truck stops, gas stations, or little stands anywhere near my farm. Town was, form my knowledge, at least two miles from the bus stop. This left me a little over five miles from the closest place to get something to eat, and I had no transportation other than my bike, which wouldn't be delivered until a few days from now when the rest of my belongings were scheduled to arrive.

Walking to my bathroom, I quickly tried to make my hair look presentable with one hand while unsuccessfully trying to brush my teeth at the same time. A healthy dose of deodorant followed before grabbing my bra off the floor and putting it on. My clothing choice was dreadfully small, and I chose a simple white shirt with a large smiley face on it. The jeans I wore yesterday were pretty dirty from all the cleaning the day before, but smelt lemony fresh thanks to the wood cleaner. Shrugging, I did the jean hop to get them on all the way up.

I used to be forced to wear makeup every day for my work place, despite not having to interact with any customers. Now that I was free from that, I gave myself a look over in the mirror. I was plain, pretty simple, and average looking. No dress shirt, no skirt, no heels, no earrings or necklaces. Just me. I gave my reflection a smile and my heart filled with the promise of a new life. Today I would head into town, get some food, and see if I could find Abigail's store.

My walking seemed to make whatever animals sharing the house with me run and hide as I went into the living room. I briefly debated leaving the door open in hopes of them running out, but quickly dismissed it. Abigail has already been using my farm as her personal sword training ground, so I wasn't sure if anyone else came around or not. I didn't really mind, at least I got to meet someone my age out of it. The thought made me touch my nose, feeling a little scab there. Resisting the urge to pick at it, I locked the door behind myself and trotted out into the early morning sun.

The air was crisp still, filling my lungs with a long deserved burst of clean. The scent of grass made me feel a little better and I found the energy to go into a small sprint. Looking around, I searched my memory for places where I would used to forage as a kid. I knew there were wild berries and things growing around here, but that was years ago. My memories were foggy at best, but I still felt myself being drawn south, going on the edge of my farm and across a stream.

To my surprise, I came across a rather large farm, complete with an amazing barn and chicken coops lining the area near a house. ' _I didn't know I had a neighbor,_ ' I mused. I wasn't sure if they were awake yet, and I didn't want to impose on them at such an early hour, so I moved to the side a little, heading more toward a road.

"Good morning," a voice called over to me. Turning, I looked over my shoulder and saw a pretty girl holding a basket with both her hands. She wore a light green fitted short sleeve shirt with what seemed to be a blue tank top under it. She had on baggy blue jeans that didn't even seem to want to stay on her, despite a belt. Suspenders clipped onto the fashion accessory, keeping them up at a decent level. She had wonderfully blue eyes and very light brownish orange hair that went into a long braid. She was also very petite, and seemed full of positive energy "I take it you're the new farmer that was moving in?"

"Word travels fast, huh?" I smiled and nodded. "I'm Kim!"

"Nice to meet you!" She greeted, trotting over to me. "I'm Leah."

"Leah, nice name." I tried to repeat it in my head, not confusing her with the other name I just learned. "What brings you out so early? Working the farm?"

"Oh no, That's Marnie's. I'm just out getting breakfast." She motioned with her basket, which I now noticed was full of strawberries, blueberries, and several oranges. "Marnie and I try to take care of the wild plants out here, so we share them when they bloom."

"I see." My stomach chose that moment to cramp, making me wince slightly and put a palm over it when a long gurgling sound came. The noise made my new friend laugh. "Sorry," I managed out. "I was so busy moving in yesterday that I forgot to eat."

"That's not good, you need to eat to keep your energy up!" Leah looked a little concerned, even though we just met. "Here, as a welcome to the valley." She held out the basket.

"I couldn't-" I held up a hand, but she put the basket handle in it and let go, forcing me to grab it before it fell.

"It's okay, really. I'll just grab some more for myself, I know right where they are!" She held up a hand to her head in a playful wave. "I'll let you get going, it looks like you were going into town?"

"Yeah, I need to shop some."

"Okay, stay on the road and you'll get right to it!" She pointed behind me and I turned to look. "That's my little cottage over there. Stop by and say hi anytime! We're neighbors now."

"I will, thank you. You too, even though I don't have much yet."

"Thanks!" Leah hopped a few steps back. "I'll see you around then!

"Yeah, see you! Thanks again, really." I help up the basket. "I'll bring it back later."

"If my lights are on, I'm up." With that, she turned and went back where she had come from.

I couldn't help but start eating right away. I first attacked the strawberries, trying to enjoy the rich flavor but ending up stuffing them in my mouth one after another. I waited until I was a little farther away to drop the remains for the birds to enjoy and then finished up everything else before making it to the village.

I knew it was a small place, but I wasn't really expecting it to be _this_ small. It was a more of a collection of houses rather than a full blown town. I somehow remembered in the back of my mind that this was a small branch off of a larger town a few miles down the road and was more of a hub for farmers and fishers to gather and sale their wares. Despite the small nature of the town, it was up kept pretty well. The roads were generally trash free, and there was enough nature around to really make me feel at ease.

Finding the store was as simple as it could be, as it was large enough to be the courthouse. The doors made a chime sound when I walked in, and I was greeted merrily from someone behind a single cash register. "Hello there!" He bellowed out. "Oh, a new face. Are you the new famer?"

That phrase was going to become a trend, I could already tell. "That's me." I smiled at him. "Kim."

"Welcome to the store, Kim. I'm Pierre." He motioned to himself. "We have everything you could need for your farm."

"Awesome!" His happiness was contagious. "I need a lot, but I'm a little broke from moving so I'll have to be a little careful."

"What would you like?" He came out from behind the counter to assist me.

"I'm not entirely sure. I need some seeds for sure… some fertilizer…. uhm…" Even though I have been reading farming magazines for weeks now, I still didn't know a whole lot. "A watering can… some food for sure…"

At that moment, I heard a door open and Abigail peeked around a shelf. "Hey Kim, you came!"

"I did," I confirmed with a small wave. Abigail's hair was damp and her clothes were sticking to her a little, probably fresh out of the shower. "Thanks for the invite."

"Oh, friends already?" Pierre nodded to himself. "Good, good, Abby needs some good influences.

"Not funny, Dad." Abigail instantly looked annoyed. "I'm sure Kim is fine with me just the way I am."

Before anything else could be said, the chime rang again and two new people came into the store. The first was a tall man with chestnut brown hair and glasses. A professional looking green business suit was very classily worn, complete with a tie. "Oh, hello there," He greeted me and I could already see the words forming.

"I'm the new farmer in town," I used my thumb to point to myself with a smile. "Take the words right out of your mouth?"

"You did!" He laughed. "I'm Harvey, and this here is Maru." He patted the girl next to him on the back. She was a little shorter than me with a nurse outfit on. Her hair was a nice brown with matching eyes behind red rimmed glasses. Her skin was a lovely dark tan and she really had an air of intelligence about her.

"Hi!" Maru greeted me cheerfully. "Welcome to Stardew Valley."

"Thank you, everyone is so nice!" I was really starting to like it here. I was about to say more but Harvey was suddenly looking at me very closely. "Wha…What is it?"

Leaning forward, he seemed to be looking at my nose. "You have a cut on your nose."

"Y-yeah…" My eyes darted over to Abigail, who suddenly went stiff. "I, uh, leaned forward too quick and nicked it on a tool in the shed…" Good job lying to someone you just met.

"I bet they were rusty tools, staying in that shed all these years?" He continued on.

"Yeah… they're dull and rusty, I was thinking of buying new ones."

Maru tilted her head. "When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?"

I blinked. "What's that?"

Pierre put his hand on Harvey's shoulder. "Come on now, let the little thing get her shopping done."

"She can shop after she gets a shot," Harvey denied him. "Tetanus is nothing to joke about." He turned to me and gave me a look like a mother would give a child who fell and skinned their knee. "Kim, Tetanus is something you can get from rusty metal, and can make you extremely ill. Your nose is already inflamed and looks infected."

"That's… because I put wood cleaner on it…"

Abigail gave a small chuckle. "Why did you do that, silly?"

I felt my cheeks warming. "I was… uhm…" I could almost _feel_ the repressed laughter around me. "I don't really like shots, so…"

"It won't hurt, and you don't need to get sick."

"I don't have the money.."

"It will be a personal gift with a full check up on the house."

I tried to think of something to say. "I really need to shop, and Pierre was showing me some seeds…"

Harvey closed his eyes. "I insist. I'll even drive you home in my truck to make up for lost time."

Maru put her hands on her hips and was smiling ear to ear. "Just give up, you're not getting out of this one."

"… Thank you for your kind offer…" I couldn't help my shoulders sagging forward as I was ushered out of the store. "I'll come back Pierre, I promise." Harvey lead me outside and surprisingly to a little clinic right next door to the store. The inside was cold and smelt sterile, but not bad.

"Fill this out, I'll just get ready." Harvey gave me a form on a clipboard and Maru saw me over to a comfortable chair to sit in.

"Don't worry," she tried to console me. "Doesn't hurt at all. Just a little prick and a little sting. But for future reference… wood cleaner doesn't help on cuts."

I couldn't help but laugh a little. "I was cleaning the house and had the rag in my back pocket when she nicked me. I instinctively dabbed it when it bled and instantly regretted it."

"She?"

I hesitated. "Oops… I mean…yeah, busted. It was an accident, promised not to tell anyone. "

Maru didn't press it."Luckily for you, you need this shot anyway."

"I really don't like-" My words were cut off when Harvey came back out into the waiting room.

"Miss Kim, I'll see you now." He thumped a syringe with a needle at least three inches long. A clear liquid squirted out the tip and almost touched the ceiling before it fell back down. I could vaguely hear Maru laugh beside me, but the room was already getting a bit dark. I took in a small breath of air and felt as if sand was pouring over my body from my head down. A hand touched my shoulder and then I fell forward.

When I came to, I found myself laying on a hospital bed, slightly inclined. I felt groggy and confused, my mind not wanting to cooperate with my thoughts of moving. "Hey, take it easy," A voice soothed me. A wet washcloth was dabbed on my forehead and I could make out the face of Harvey close to mine. "You fainted. Can't say I've ever had that happen before, but I apologize for scaring you."

"Scaring…?" I managed to speak, trying to sit up but was gently pushed back down. "I.. the needle…"

"Was fake," Harvey assured me. "Maru gave it to me as a gift a little after she started working here."

"I see…" I closed my eyes. "The real one?"

"I need your permission."

"…Yeah, before I really wake up."

Harvey got up and I heard him talk to Maru for a moment before she came over to me. "On the hip, pull your jeans down?" I undid the three buttons on my pants and scooted them down a bit. "Whoa, easy there girl." She laughed and I realized I was still mostly out of it from fainting. "Though I do fully approve of cherry prints." The joke made me chuckle and after a moment Harvey was back.

"Here goes…" I winced slightly and held my breath. "And done! That wasn't bad was it?"

"Horrible," I wheezed out.

Maru laughed. "Don't be a baby." She put a Hello Kitty bandage on the tiny pin prick on my side and then reached over to get a lollipop for me. "Does Kimmy want a sucker?"

"Only if it's cherry," I sat up and smiled woozily.

* * *

The sun was just starting to set when my shopping was done for the day. I had several bags full of food to stock my kitchen, multiple kinds of seeds to plant, fertilizer to help them grow, and a watering can to help me get started. My Springtime crops were going to be small, but it was a start. I knew it'd probably be a year or two before I could work the full farm, and even that seemed to be an impossible task. There just simply weren't enough hours in the day to do it all… How my grandpa managed it was beyond my comprehension.

I made my way to the saloon near the middle of the small village and somehow managed to open the door with my hands completely full of plastic bags. The inside was well lit for a bar and several people were talking merrily to each other. I placed Abigail on an arcade game, staring furiously at the screen as her hands did the gaming dance of elegance on the controls. I was about to admire her skills as a gamer when her character died and she howled in frustration.

Besides her, I saw Harvey at a table talking to someone I didn't know. As I approached him, I was met with a genuine smile and a big welcome. "Kim, the new kid in town!" He bellowed out, making almost everyone look over at me. Thankfully they didn't all come over like I thought they would. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out what seemed to be coupons. "Here kiddo, five coupons good for free meals. Anything you want."

"W-Wow!" I took the after setting my groceries down. "Thank you!" I looked at him. "What was your name, sir?"

"Sir!" The man laughed. "Call me Gus! I own this little saloon. Whatever you need, you just let me know and once you get that little farm of yours going, let me know and I'll buy your produce at a high price. We have to keep our money in our little village you know. Good economy for everyone!"

"Now, now," Harvey smiled and put a hand on Gus's shoulder. "Don't overwhelm her with our town's money problems." He picked up his cup and downed the remainder of his coffee in two large gulps. "I promised this pretty lady a ride home, and I need to make due on that."

"You do that," Gus agreed before turning to me. "And you, 'pretty lady', come back any time!"

"I'll get the truck," Harvey told me. "Come on out in like five minutes."

"Sure." I watched him leave and Gus go to tend to other tables. Someone new came in the door and I glanced over at him. He had on shorts and a polo, covered with a battered JoJa corporation jacket. His hair was unkept and he had a five o'clock shadow on his face. His eyes looked over at me as he got close so I smiled at him. "Hi, I'm new in town. My name-"

"Do I know you?" He asked, not breaking his stride.

"N-no…"

"Then don't talk to me." He passed by without even looking back while speaking. "Gimme a beer, Emily."

I took in a breath "Okaaaay." Picking up my things, I headed out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

I knew I had to start planting as soon as I could. I was desperately trying to get the first seeds in the ground, but luck wasn't on my side today. I was barely able to till enough soil to get my first bed of vegetables going before I was almost too tired to even stand. My tools were old, the handles rough and breaking. The head of my hoe was so bad it was already getting chips in it from tiny rocks. I knew I had to fix them before I could continue, but my money was already tight. I needed _weeks_ to harvest anything, and my survivability was looking to be something I had to focus on until that point came. Leah was incredibly petite and if she foraged for her meals like I needed to, I could tell I was going to shed a few pounds until the harvest season.

 **Stardust III**

 **By: Satashi**

My hoe snapped in half when I tried to remove a larger chunk of stone from my planting area. I let out a small curse and tossed it to the side in annoyance. My hands were blistered and sore, despite having brand new gloves on them. Sweat dripped down my face and I wiped it with the back of my arm, smearing dirt over my forehead.

"Wood troubles?" The voice made me look over at a smiling woman who had her arms crossed. "I can help you there. I'm Robin." She held out her hand, which I shook after taking off my gloves. "I'm the local carpenter."

"Oh thank goodness," I sighed out in appreciation. "We're going to be great friends." This made the woman laugh. She had amazing red hair, up in a short but high ponytail. Cheerful green eyes shone in the sun, contrasting against her work clothes.

Robin picked up my broken tool and inspected it. "This was very high grade hickory, not easy to come across . Good grain structure…or at least was…"

"Shed didn't hold up very well," I told her, nodding over at it. "There are some leaks, and they went right onto the tool area. That and general neglect seemed to have done them in."

The woman nodded. "I can make you some nice tools out of cherry. They are really durable but still have a good flex in them."

"Wouldn't a harder wood be better? One without flex?"

Robin laughed. It wasn't a mean laugh, but rather a kind of laugh that made me more curious than upset. "No, no, you want one that will absorb the shock of the hits. Otherwise you'll vibrate your fingers off and hurt your hands. Would you like to come to my shop and look?"

"I'd love to." I followed her to the truck parked near the entrance to my farm. "How far are you? I don't have any transportation yet."

"Just up the mountain a bit. I can take you home after, don't worry." The offer made me agree and I got in the passenger side. "My daughter Maru told me you had arrived so I thought I'd stop by. Seems like a good choice." The ride to her house was filled with questions about different types of wood and why they were or weren't good for specific jobs. The conversation continued into the house and through meeting Robin's husband Demetrius. Finally, I found myself in a lumber mill, looking at planks of wood and other cuts that I wasn't quite sure of.

"So, have you made up your mind?" My new friend put a hand on her hip and beamed at me.

"Uh, I think so… I'd like cherry."

"Good choice! I have some lumber I can use in stock out back. How many rods do you need?"

"Let's see… Hoe, scythe, shovel, an axe, maybe a pick axe for breaking down larger rocks…"

Robin nodded. "So five full sized ones and maybe some smaller ones for more precise work?"

"That sounds good. How much will it be?"

"For cherry?" Robin placed a hand on her chin and looked up while humming. "Taking into consideration the styles of the handles, and the wood… I'd say roughly a hundred each."

I felt my mouth dry up, and not just from the sawdust floating around in the mill. "I can't afford that at all…"

This made Robin hum again. "Yeah, you're really new in town and I know all about the pains of moving… And you won't have any income until you start selling… but you can't sell without tools…" Her face lit up as if an idea just occurred. "Tell you what, I have a customer who needs some things that will give me enough spare wood to make you some starting tools. They'll be made of Pine, which isn't the best for what you need, but I can spare it if you help me cut down a tree and get it into my mill.

The offer was too good to be true. "Sure!" I shook her hand again. "Thank you! This will help me out so much!"

Robin grinned. "Then let's get chopping, shall we?"

* * *

I had been tired before, but this literally made me redefine the word. My muscles ached and my back was screaming at me for what I put it through. Robin and I had not only chopped down three trees with nothing but hatchets, but also measured and sawed them into lengths of logs to have drug back to the mill by a few horses. We then debarked them, and I assisted Robin in turning them into planks. My wood was cut from the scrap and out of the three trees, Robin barely was able to get what she needed without sacrificing a whole section to them.

Needless to say, even though I worked out regularly back in the city, my body wasn't built to be a lumberjack. I was barely able to walk through town after asking Robin to drop me off at the end of the day. I knew it wasn't a smart idea, but I had to work fast, and each day counted. To my surprise there was a blacksmith here in town and I really needed one right now.

The door opened, hitting a small bell above it to signal that I had arrived. "One moment," a voice called to me. My eyes looked over at a man next to a huge press. He had a long glowing piece of metal in it and was slamming the top down onto the working material. I watched in amazement as the large man shifted the metal around, hit it more, and finally took it to what seemed to be a dunking vat filled with a liquid that caught fire when he submerged it. "There. What can I do for you?" He most certainly had the look of a blacksmith about him. Short brown hair, a thick beard, and a body that looked a little heavyset but also incredibly muscular. "Ah, let me guess. Farming tools?"

"Nailed it," I confirmed. "I don't have much money right now, so I just need my hoe blade fixed." I took the broken hoe tip from my backpack and handed it to him.

"Sorry missy, this one's too far gone. I wouldn't even melt it down to re-pour it. You'll need to start from scratch."

"I was afraid you would say that…" I sighed and my shoulders sank. "What's the damage?"

"You'd want iridium ideally, but that stuff is so rare I don't even have any to offer. Until then, probably iron would be your best bet."

"Iron is good."

"For this thing, I'll need about a day and around eighty dollars to form it around your handle. That will cover the basic shape and sharpening. If you want more elaborate detailing, it'll be extra." I really needed that money just to survive for the time being, so I was about to try and strike a deal with him when the door opened again. "Welco-" The man's voice cut off when he saw who was in the doorway."Hello Morris. I'm really busy right now, so if you're not buying, you're leaving."

I could feel the hostility in the Blacksmith's voice, and it didn't suit him at all. Despite being strong, he had a kind look about him. The person named Morris came in anyway and spoke to me instead. "Hello there, you're the new farmer, correct?"

"That's me."

"Good, good, I was hoping to get you before you purchased some outdated tools."

The blacksmith groaned and went back to check on the metal he had just quenched. "I needed a blade for my hoe so I can till my soil."

Morris was a large man, and waddled up to me with a smile that I knew all too well from my days at Joja. It was a fake smile that lured so many people into thinking they were in the wrong despite having a problem. "You, my dear, need a tractor. One that can till, mix fertilizer in with the ground, and place seeds the correct distance apart! We are branching out into different markets and you have been selected to get the first model around here."

Who was this guy to walk into someone else's store and sell their customers something? "I don't have the money for that."

"Who needs money?" Morris held out his hands. "It's free of course." I heard a loud clang of mallet on metal behind me as the smith went back to work. I could feel that he wanted to say something, but didn't for some reason. He seemed too kind for his own good.

"There's always a catch to these things," I replied instead. It wasn't what he was expecting to hear, and his face faltered for just a moment before the facade came back up.

"All we ask is your loyalty. Word of mouth between farmers is more effective than any advertisement we could dream of. If you, the new person in town, suddenly produce more with that dusty old piece of land than others who have been trying for years, our sales will more than cover this gift! What do you say?"

I wanted it. I really did. Every fiber in my being was screaming to take the deal, as it would secure my success and make sure my days weren't spent feeling like I do now. I was weak, tired, and hungry. My back was stabbing pain into my hip, my feet were sore and my hands were sensitive where my blisters have burst open and probably became infected. Despite this, I knew that smile. I knew those words. I have heard people talk over coffee. What he said was true, but I was hesitating.

My grandfather's voice came back to me, speaking words that I had long forgotten but somehow still held within. Nature didn't like machinery that damaged it. A Joja tractor more than likely falsified their emissions report, probably burned more gas than the maximal requirement. Grandpa told me taking care of nature was what allowed him to work his farm until he was too old to continue. I knew this wasn't the best choice to make, but my Grandfather's memory and confidence in me was more important. He entrusted this land to me, and I would respect that. "I'm sorry," I finally spoke. "I have already signed an exclusivity contract here. "

Morris dropped his smile and I could tell he was biting back words. Finally he smiled again and nodded at me. "Very well, we have to respect contracts, do we not? In that case, I bid you farewell." He turned on me and waddled out the door, closing it a little harder than was needed.

"That was a silly choice, farmer." He turned and looked at me. His face was all smiles and his eyes shone with confidence. "But anyone who turns down equipment for forged tools is a silly person I would like to call my friend." Standing, he took off his thick heat insulating gloves. "My name is Clint."

"Kim," I shook his hand and had to fight not to stagger when he gripped it firmly.

"A hoe blade, eh?"

"Yes, but I am really hard up for cash right now… What can we work with that will be good for now? I can pay more when my first crops come in."

"Your first crops will pay for more than this. You'll be lucky if you have anything left after you pay back your debts." Clint looked over at his large cabinet. "I have old moulds from the farmer before you, a friend of my dad's before he left for a bigger town. I assume it was your father or grandfather who ran that farm before you?"

"Grandfather."

"I've heard stories." Clint rooted around in the cabinet for a while before pulling out what seemed to be a slightly deformed hoe head. "He wanted to bring us metal himself, taken from the land by his own hands. Didn't like industrial machines. Instead he had a pickaxe and hired adventurers from the guild to protect him as he went into the mines… Tell you what, Kim." He stood to his full height and placed a work hardened hand on my shoulder. "I'm certain I have some left over bronze from those days. I'll tell you how to smelt it and pour it into a mold you create yourself with some of my sand here. We'll call it even for the metal I used of his after he passed and left it to our shop in his will."

I nodded at that. Although I didn't feel quite like working on something like that, I had already chosen my path. I was going to see it through, just as my grandpa had. "Sounds like a deal, Clint. Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, lass!" He called out cheerfully as he went over to get some metal. "You have a long night ahead of you!"

* * *

I felt more dead than alive when I made it back to my farm. I thought I would have fainted along the way, but luckily I had powered on. I had gone from struggling on a farm this morning to working a lumber mill, to smelting a hoe head at a forgery. Adding in the few mile walk illuminated only by moonlight, and I was certain I'd be in bed most of tomorrow.

I stopped after just entering my farm and walked over to the side where I had originally planned to set up a small stand to sell my produce to random people who came by. Kneeling, I took out three pinecones and broke them apart to expose the seeds. "Three trees taken, three trees given." I said the words my grandpa used to tell me when I was younger. I buried them as best I knew how and then continued to my house.

The rats made their standard scurrying sound as I drew near. I dropped my backpack right at the entrance to the door and took out the hoe head I had made earlier so I could look at it more. It was badly forged, bent incorrectly and the blade wasn't even. I had sharpened it as best I could, but it was still chipped in some places. Although I was guaranteed it would hold up, as Clint himself made sure I did it right, it looked horrible. The cast was rough and the area that would attach to the handle was most certainly not straight. However, I was proud of it. I had made it, and it would help me produce plant life that would sustain myself here, just as my late Grandpa wanted me to. For the first time in as long as I can remember, I was _proud_ of what I had done today. This thought carried with me to my bed, and I climbed into it after taking off my clothes. I didn't even have it in me to take a shower tonight…

When I awoke, I heard the sounds of rain bashing against my house. Thunder roared overhead and I groaned painfully when my muscles moved. It took two attempts to sit up, and my head protested harshly. The cold hardwood floor greeted my feet and I half walked, half limped, over to my bathroom. I turned on the hot water in the shower and looked down at the dirty brown liquid dripping from me. I cleaned myself twice, and washed my hair three times before I was certain I was ready to get out.

I wrapped a towel around myself when I got out and used a second to do my hair. As I went across the house, I couldn't help but stop when I saw something reflecting the light on the floor. Kneeling down, I picked it up and turned it over in my hands. The hoe head that I had crafted yesterday was… perfect. The blade was in line and almost cut my finger when I touched it. The metal was as smooth as glass, and almost reflected my image like a polished mirror. The area that came up to connect to the rod it would attach to was reinforced and, from what I could tell, would hold securely in place with no vibration.

I was beyond confused. I knew this was what I had crafted, as it still held my initials on the flat side. Clint had helped me make them, and it was most certainly what I had done.

I heard sounds near the floorboards and saw what looked like colorful creatures hiding behind things, watching me. When they came into focus, though, they seemed to fade away from my sight. I wasn't sure what was going on, but I didn't feel anything evil from them. Instead, I could almost sense a welcoming feeling… a happy feeling.

The lightning flashed again and thunder rocked my headache hard enough for me to close my eyes. When I opened them again, the little creatures were all gone. I stood up slowly, wincing at my sore body, and continued on my way, stopping only to pick up a letter that was laying in front of my door. There was no address on it, and the message inside was blissfully simple:

 _I can help you with your little 'rat problem'. Come visit me by the lake._

Closing the letter, I looked down at the hoe head in my hands for a few moments before going to get dressed.


	4. Chapter 4

I felt thoroughly drenched to the bone. I had chosen to dress for the storm as best I could, but an umbrella wasn't on my top choices to bring with me on the bus ride over here. My jacket was doing its best to keep me dry, but the wind pushed the rain through and I could feel it dripping down my stomach. Adjusting my top with a groan, I looked into the distance and saw a tower by the lake. As far as I could tell, this was the only place it could be. Leah's cottage was by the river and Marnie's was a little closer to my farm. As I reached the door, I held up my hand to knock, but a voice bid me enter before I had the chance to do so.

 **Stardust IV**

 **By: Satashi**

The tower was thankfully warm, fueled by a fire in the room. A bubbling cauldron was on it and an oddly dressed man was behind it. He had dark purple hair, a moustache and beard. He wore a black cloak around himself, making it hard to tell his appearance beyond that. "Welcome, Kim. The rain is indeed harsh today." I opened my mouth to ask how he knew me, but he kept on. "Yes, I know you. I've seen your coming before you opened that letter."

"How do you know that?"

"I know many things. I see many, many things. One of these is something you see as well, or at least you would see if you weren't so blind."

"I can see just fine!"

"Can you, girl?" He asked me, peering over the cauldron. "Tell me, what color are they?"

"They-?"

"You know them, the Junimo!" He waved his hands as if he were upset that I wasn't following him. "Ah, you common folk are all the same. Tell me, Kim, why did they chose to aid you? Why do they dance in your house? What do you have to nature that they see in you?"

"You're kind of freaking me out," I told him honestly, taking a step back.

The man held up his hands. "Wait, wait, I do come off as aggressive. That is not my intentions." He moved to a pentagram drawn on the floor and threw some type of powder on it. A hazy image came up from nowhere and I saw a tiny green…thing… walking around in my house. It was the size of a kitten and looked as if it's body and head were uniform, with tiny arms and legs jutting out from it. It was actually kind of adorable. "Junimo," The man spoke again, motioning to it. "They swarm your house and farm as well as the community center in town. They only show themselves to those in tune with nature, which," he pointed at me. "You are."

"I am?" I blinked and leaned closer to look at it. "Wait.. how are you looking into my house!?" I suddenly blushed and held a hand over my chest. "Have you been spying on me!?"

"Relax, your feminine body has no interest to me, lass. I have more important things to do than peep at a flat chested-"

"Ex _scuse_ me!?"

The man held up a hand. "I just want to know why they chose you."

"I don't know," I told him. "I'm only doing what my grandpa taught me." With that, I moved toward the door again and left. Jogging down the path leading up to the tower, I made my way back home. The wind whipped around me and the rain picked up to the point where I really couldn't see well anymore. I leaned my head down and kept moving, ignoring the roaring thunder that seemed to rattle straight through me.

After what seemed like way too long to be walking, I tried to get my bearings. My body was still tired from the day before and I found it a little hard to think. I was starting to feel a little funny as well, my vision becoming a little harder to focus. "There you are," a voice came to me. I turned and saw the purple haired man walking towards me, the rain bouncing off an invisible shield around him. "You run away when I try to help , get lost in the rain, and make me come get you."

"I'm fine," I wheezed out as the stinging wind finally found its way through my jacket and around my soaking body. It was enough to make me want to throw up, and I almost did.

"You're not fine, lass." The man put an arm over my shoulder and hoisted me up in his arms. I felt dead, but the rain not hitting me anymore thanks to his barrier was welcome. "I'll drop you off at Leah's. I hope this clears up our misunderstanding of each other." I tried to say something but couldn't quite get the words out. Instead, I felt the exhaustion take over.

When I awoke again, I saw a man hovering over me. He said my name and I recognized him as Harvey. He smiled and said something else, but I closed my eyes again and he drifted away. I opened them again and turned my head enough to see that I was in a bed, in a place I didn't know. I could barely make out a figure not too far away. I think it was Leah, but my fever made it hard to focus. She was painting something, focused on her brush strokes. I closed my eyes again.

This time I was awoken by someone. A gentle shaking stirred me and I groggily opened my eyes yet again. It _was_ Leah, I found out, and she had a bowl of something next to the bed. "Hi there," she greeted me. "Can you sit up? I hate to wake you, but you need to eat and take some medicine."

"What…?" I did manage to sit up, but only with her help. I then realized I must be in her cottage. It was a loft style, being mostly one large room. "I was… outside…"

Leah nodded at me. "Walking around in the rain of all things! It may not be winter anymore, but it's _still_ chilly outside sometimes. The Wizard carried you to my door and said you passed out from over working yourself! I called Doctor Harvey to come check up on you, I was worried sick!" Her voice didn't seem mad, but rather concerned. "Imagine having someone you just met get dropped off in your house passed out with a fever; I had no idea what to do."

"I'm sorry… I'll go."

"No, _No_! That's not what I meant!" She prevented me from getting out of her bed. "I'm just shocked and nervous that's all. I don't mind, we all have to help take care of each other, you know? Marnie has always come to me when I got sick, the least I can do is show that compassion to someone else."

"…Thank you." I smiled as best I could. "I don't want to come off as the farmer who can't even make it without constant help… I'll pay you back when I can."

"You'll do no such thing." Leah put her hand on my head, and I could see that she had all different colors of paint smeared around on it. "You'll eat this yummy soup I made, and take this medicine that was left for you."

"I'll do that." I confirmed, taking a spoon from her. "Thank you. Really, I mean it."

"You're welcome." Leah smiled at me honestly.

I took the first bite as she watched, and really appreciated the flavor. It was gentle, but thick. It coated my throat and eased down into my stomach, settling it and making me feel much better. "This… is really good."

"Thank you! I got the recipe from Evelyn, a nice old lady in town." Leah started eating the soup herself, sitting by my bedside.

There was an easy silence as we ate, listening to the storm raging outside. I couldn't tell what time it was from the light coming in so I looked around the room. I saw several sculptures and paintings, both large and small. "Did you… make all these?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah!" She beamed at me. "I did, do you like them?"

"I do actually…" I had to remind myself to eat some more before continuing. "They look really good. I recall in my old city, there were art shows. I could easily see these being there."

"Oh no, I could never do that. My stuff isn't that good!"

"I think so," I looked around a little more before finding my eyes settling on the easel that she had been working on earlier. Peering at it, I saw a painting of the bed I was laying in, and the person laying in it had a washcloth on their head with rosy red cheeks, along with brown hair in a high ponytail sprawled over the pillow.

"A-ahh!" Leah scooted over in front of me, blocking the painting. "I just, you know, take inspiration from whatever is around me. That's why I moved here, the land is so beautiful." As if on cue, the room lit up brightly with lightning and thunder roared deeply in the sky above us. "Even rain can be beautiful from an artistic point of view," she finished lamely.

I smiled at her. She was quickly becoming a new friend, and I appreciated that. "When I'm not sick and stealing your bed, I'd like to see some of your work."

Leah blushed lightly at the thought of showing her work off. "Yeah… I think I'd like that too." She took my empty bowl from me and took them to the kitchen section of the room. Coming back, she got some pills and filled a glass with some water. "Here, take this." I did as I was told and nodded my thanks. "It's getting late, you should get some more sleep."

"Late?" I asked, concerned. "I can't, I mean, you've done so much for me and-"

"Shush," she commanded. "You complimented my art, that's more than the last person I shared my bed with did." It took her a second, but her eyes went wide and she blushed furiously, waving her hands out in front of herself. "Not that I mean I want to share my _bed_ with you, I was referring to… ohhhh!"

I laughed, partly from her slip, and partly because she was really amusing when embarrassed. "I get it. I do!" Although I did enjoy the laugh, it still took a lot out of me. I felt a little woozy. "Ooh, shouldn't have done that."

"Here, lay down." She pushed me back down gently and covered me with the sheets. "I'll get some rest later. You on the other hand, worked yourself silly. Take this opportunity to recover or you'll only get worse and lose more work."

"Yes ma'am," I sighed out, not really having any other choice. I heard her get up and take a few steps away, towards the painting I saw earlier. "Hey, Leah?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you again. I mean it."

"… You're welcome."

* * *

When I awoke next, the morning light was peeking in through the windows. My head was fuzzy, but over all I felt amazingly better. I slowly brought myself up and saw Leah asleep on a couch not too far away. She was on her back and had one arm hanging off. One leg was mostly fallen off as well, along with the covers being part way onto the floor. Her mouth was wide open and chin slightly propped up on a scrunched up pillow while producing a snore that I didn't think humanly possible from such a tiny frame.

I couldn't help but smile at her, thankful for everything she had done for me. Even though we had just met, she had gone above and beyond what anyone could have possibly expected. I made a mental note to be sure to spoil her when I could. Slowly getting out of bed, I tried in vain to smooth out my clothes. They were just a little past salvation so I gave up.

"But I dun wanna stop eating…" Leah spoke dreamily, a little drool running down her cheek. " Biiiig marshmallow."

I had to clamp a hand over my mouth to stop from laughing, but a snort still escaped. It was enough to make her sleepily open her eyes and then fall off the couch entirely. "Hey, I'm sorry." I walked over to her to help the still half asleep girl up.

"Hi," she squinted at me, mostly asleep. She was still in her clothes from last night and I felt bad for it. "You look tasty…"

"Please don't eat me," I giggled. Leading her over to the bed, she crawled into it at once, hugging the pillow. "I'll let you sleep."

"Nom, nom, nom…" Her lips smacked and before she could even form some type of rational thought, the snoring was back, ramping up in volume as she drifted off deeper into sleep.

I didn't want to just leave without a proper goodbye, but at the same time, I didn't want to sit in her house awkwardly until she woke up again either. Luckily for me, I saw a note with my name on it on the table. Picking it up, I read it to myself.

 _Kim,_

 _I am horrible waking up in the mornings. If you're reading this, it probably means I'm conked out. Please feel free to stay as long as you want, but if you need to leave then I understand that as well. Your medicine is on the table and the TV remote as well! Please promise me you won't leave unless you're feeling better!_

 _-Leah_

I turned the letter over and picked up a pen to write a letter back to her.

 _Leah,_

 _Thank you for taking me in for the night, and I'm so sorry for how I apparently just crashed into your house sick. I know something like that isn't fun, and your generosity made me very glad to have met you before. You're always welcome at my place, even if it is a little dirty right now. You're the best, Leah, and once again, I really love your art! I'm going to wait for you to describe them before I admire them, as I want to hear what you had in mind._

 _-Kim_

I read it over once before drawing a smiley face eating a marshmallow on it. Now satisfied, I carefully snuck out the door and closed it lightly behind myself.

* * *

Arriving at home, I unlocked my door and stepped inside thankfully. I wasn't my best still, and decided to take the day off to recover. I didn't make it but a few steps in when I heard a soft squeak near my feet. I almost jumped in shock when I saw the little Junimo there, but I somehow managed to keep myself down. It was the green one, and appeared to be concerned for me, as it was hugging my foot.

A blue one came out behind the couch then and ran over to me, jumping onto my leg and holding onto it. I could almost hear them, or rather feel what they were trying to say to me. ' _Get better._ ' the words almost came to my mind like my own thoughts. They were caring and kind, and I felt at ease from them. I just _knew_ they had helped my grandpa, and that was good enough for me. "I'm going to sleep," I informed them, making my way back to the bedroom.

My bed was welcoming, and I had to force myself to change into some pajamas before crawling into it. The mattress was incredibly soft, almost as if it had been repaired or brand new. The frame didn't squeak anymore and the sheets were amazingly comforting. They smelt of flowers and felt like a super expensive set that I had felt in the mall before. This, along with the pillows that somehow were even better than my old ones made me fall asleep almost at once.

My dream was full of visions of the Junimo dancing and playing. They were having fun together, as if it were a game to fix the hoe blade I had forged. I then saw them working magic on my bed, jumping on it to fluff the pillows, and almost singing as they fixed the wood and rusted screws magically. It was a fun dream, and I could almost feel my exhaustion draining away from me as I dreamed about them. It was relaxing and welcoming.


	5. Chapter 5

Walking out to my mailbox was a new experience for me. In the past, I had always gone to the post office to retrieve my mail. Making an early morning trek out to the box felt nice, and I was shocked to see letters in it. I normally only got bills, so seeing hand written addresses was a very pleasant change of pace. I flipped through them slowly as I walked back to the house, glancing to smile at the small sprigs of green already starting to appear in the section of the farm I had started working.

 **Stardust V**

 **By: Satashi**

The first letter was from Lewis. The mayor had formally invited me to come to town on Friday, tonight, around three in the afternoon. He had informed me that a lot of the town's inhabits gathered there weekly to catch up and have fun as a community. The second letter was from Robin, who told me that the handles for my other tools were ready to be picked up when I needed them, and to be sure to hit the saloon up on Friday night. A third letter was from Leah, who wanted to be sure I knew about the weekly gathering on Friday nights, and to be that she hoped I was feeling better.

A knock on the door made me put the letters down in favor of opening it up to my new guest. To my surprise, I saw Abigail there. She wore the same clothes as when I first met her, complete with a sword strapped to her back. It really looked out of place on her frame, and the way she had it strapped showed inexperience, even from my limited standpoint. "Hey there!" She greeted me cheerfully. Leaning forward, she looked at me nose. "Ah, you still have a mark…"

"It's fine," I tapped my nose. "It just needs to finish healing over."

"Hmm…." She stood upright again. "I hope it heals quickly… anyway, hi!"

"Hi!" I laughed at her second greeting. "Please come in!"

"Thank you, but I can't stay, I'm on my way to practice." She pointed back to her sword. "I'm going to the mines later today. Need to help out the adventure's guild!"

My eyes widened slightly. "Oh wow, that's awesome. You're a tough one huh?" She seemed to beam at my words. "I've heard about the mines from Clint in town. He told me that if I were to bring the raw materials to him, he'd work on my tools for a lot less than normal. I needed to hire someone from the guild to accompany me into the mines to get some ore…" I suddenly realized something. "Hey, if you're going there today, could I hire you?"

"Wha- today?" Abigail looked shocked. "I'm, I mean…"

"I won't take long, and I can pay you! I really need my tools so I can keep going. I have trees and rocks I need to take care of."

"W-well then! I-I guess I'll have to help you!"

I gave a little hop in triumph. "Thank you! You're the best Abigail! I can go now so you won't have to wait. Just a moment and- oh! I'm sorry, I just got carried away. What did you stop by far?"

"Oh yeah, on Fridays we generally always gather in the Saloon for the- Why are you giggling like that?"

* * *

I peered into the mine entrance curiously. It wasn't anything like I had imagined it to be, as I was used to seeing large, industrial ones that you could drive trucks through. Instead, this was just what appeared to be just a simple mine that happened to be rich with ores. "How deep is it?"

"Not sure," Abigail told me from behind. " It was in full operation way back when, but it slowly started uncovering monsters and stuff inside. The crew quit going as deep until just the first little bit was used. The adventurer's guild made a shop near it and make sure nothing comes out. Luckily for us, they have never once tried to make it out of the mines in the past hundred years or longer."

"And it's pretty ore heavy, even near the top?"

"Y-yeah…" Abigail's voice stuttered again.

"Well then…" I picked up a weathered pickax and a lantern by the entrance. "I'd like some copper and tin, but if we can get some iron then all the better. Ready?" Abigail looked a little more pale than she once was. "Abigail?"

"R-ready!" She clutched her sword with both hands and slowly started walking forward.

"Is it that dangerous?" I pondered, looking around and seeing nothing on the inside.

"Yeah!" Abigail breathed out, eyes darting around.

"Hmmm…" I kept my eyes peeled as we made our way deeper into the mountain. We had been walking for a few minutes before I finally saw something glittering in my light. "Oh, look!" Jogging over to it, I crouched down to inspect my discovery. "I think this is iron!" I started quickly tugging on the exposed section and brushing off dirt. "Wow, I think it's a big chunk!" Abigail stood nervously next to me, clutching her sword while I worked. "I think I'll have to bash it out. Watch my back while I pick at it."

"Y-yeah!" The purple haired girl turned and took a few steps away from me, looking around.

After what seemed like an eternity of picking, I finally managed to break the chunk loose. Kneeling, I grinned at the rock and dirt covered chunk before me. It would fill my backpack up completely, and I assumed I could make at _least_ two tools out of it. Moving my backpack over to the ore, I hesitated picking it up. A small, cute looking jelly creature had just hopped onto it. The thing was a little bigger than both my hands together and had adorable eyes and a smiling mouth that seemed to just float around wherever it looked. "Awww, it's so cute!"

"Th-that's a slime!" Abigail almost shrieked. "G-get away from it!"

"This cute thing?" I almost laughed. "Don't be silly, look how harmless it is." I reached for it, despite the protests. Before my hand could touch it, the slime lunged at my face, splattering over it. I tried to gasp but it made an air tight seal around my mouth and nose. I fell back and clawed desperately at my face , finally getting my fingers under it and peeling it off with a quick motion. I threw it on the ground and turned over, crawling to Abigail and hiding behind her.

"I told you!" She hissed at me.

"I'm sorry!" I panted out, looking at the slime. Luckily it all came off of me, but it was slowly hopping back, that deceiving smile still present. "What are you waiting for, kill it!"

"I-I know!" She held her sword with both hands, choking the handle.

"Abigail!"

"I.. I can't!" she ducked down and avoided a lung from the slime. "I'm so sorry! I'm not really part of the guild!"

"Why are you telling me this _now_!?" I demanded, scrambling to my feet and pulling her up along with me.

"I didn't mean to!" She cried out, holding onto my arm.

I took the sword from her in my left hand and steadied myself, swinging when it jumped at me again. The blade cut right through it as if it really were made of jelly, and two plops landed behind us. We were both silent for a moment before Abigail slowly peeled herself off me.

"Wow… you were _so_ awesome!"

I swallowed. "Thanks… I think…" We both turned and looked at the dead slime, only to gulp as several more began hopping towards us from the darkness. The dead slime was absorbed into others, who in turn hopped onto each other to form a giant jelly. A long, oozing tentacle came from its side and waved in the air as it's now larger face looked at us in delight. "Ohhhh no." I took a few steps back, pulling my friend along with me. "I've seen too much hentai to know where this is going!"

I pulled Abigail along with me as we ran, scurrying for the entrance with all we had. I paused only for a moment to swing the sword and carve another slime in half. When we made it out, we both went over to the side and collapsed, panting heavily. After a moment, I took a long intake of air and sighed out. " I think I lost a year of my life…"

"I'm so sorry…" My friend replied, voice clearly shaken. She was almost quivering, hugging her knees. "I wanted to impress you… I… wanted someone to respect my goals…" She put her forehead onto her knees, her hair falling around her. "Everyone who ever found out about me wanting to join the guild teased me… My father doesn't want me to do anything but… but 'be a girl' and cook dinner or clean the house… I just… really liked someone accepting me for who I wanted to be… Look where that got me… I almost had you killed…"

I sat down next to her and put the sword out in front of me. I was upset, yes, but I don't think she would have let me go _too_ far into that cave without letting me know the truth. "I don't consider a ruined shirt and slime covered boots qualifies as nearly getting killed."

"Yeah, but that giant slime wouldn't have been fun for a first time." She tilted her head to rest her cheek on her knees. "I watch hentai too," she joked lightly.

I looked at her a moment before giving a small smile and offering her a little fist bump, which she took. "So, you want to be an adventurer, huh?" I leaned back on the grass with my hands behind my head. I heard her do the same next to me.

"Ever since I was little," she confessed. "But I've always been too scared to do anything… I practice and practice, but whenever I try to go into the cave, I get scared off within minutes… I hate it."

"Maybe…" I considered my words, trying to decide if I was going too far for someone I just met. "Maybe you should be a little more honest with yourself and those around you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like… you asked me to keep your sword a secret when we first met… Maybe if you want others to take you seriously, you should be more serious yourself? Stop hiding it, and stop trying to practice by yourself… Go to the guild, ask for training. Wear your sword instead of hiding it."

"… I don't know, my parents sold my last sword when they found out, and I was grounded for weeks."

"Sometimes you need to be more determined, though I don't know your situation really well… I'm sorry if I'm over stepping here."

Abigail shook her head. "No, no you're right… I need to do something more… Show them I'm not just someone to be married off to cook and clean for someone who does everything they want to. I'm not a house wife, I'm…"

"An adventurer." I sat up and looked down at her. "I'm just as much a farmer as you are a cave explorer. What say we both help each other out and learn new things together?"

"… Yeah. Yeah, let's do that." She sat up with me and we shook hands. "It's a deal, Farmer Kim."

"A deal, Abigail the Adventurer."

* * *

It was late afternoon before I left Robin's shop, heading down the pathway to her house while chatting it up with the redhead. When we arrived, I waved goodbye to her and almost jumped when their garage door opened up right next to me. A young man, probably in his very early twenties, came out walking his motorcycle. "Oh, hello," he mused, not quite making eye contact.

"Have you met Sebby yet?" Robin asked me, to which I shook my head. "Sebby, this is Kim, the new farmer who moved in nearby."

"Oh, that's right. Maru talked about you. Said you passed out seeing a needle."

I blushed hard, but luckily Robin was there to stand up for me, slapping his arm and telling him that was rude. "Yeah, that's me."

"Sorry, " he looked away. "It's easier to backspace."

"Sebby, you need to get in the real world more," Robin scolded him gently. "The people you talk to online-"

"My friends, mom."

"Your _friends_ online aren't here to interact with. You should go out more. Sam said he wanted to hang out with you tonight at the saloon."

The man sighed. "Yeah, I know."

Robin popped her fist onto her palm as if she suddenly had an idea. "I know, why don't you give Kim here a ride to town? She is heading to the saloon anyway." I could tell he didn't want to, so I opened my mouth to oppose, but was cutoff. "He's real safe, don't worry. I'll see you there in a while." With that, she waved and headed into the house.

"She doesn't understand," He protested. "Sorry you got involved in this."

"For what it's worth," I tried making conversation. "My mom and dad never understood my friends either. They referred to them as 'online friends' and not 'real life friends'. "

"Yeah, and saying they don't really care because they're not here to be with you," he agreed.

"Or not understanding you can't pause an online game!"

"Exactly!" He nodded. After a while he gave me a small, unsure smile. "Kim, right?"

"That's me. And you're… Sebby?"

"Sebastian." He had wonderful black hair that was semi spikey but still long. Although he looked a little gothic, I could tell her was more of the gamer type. Possibly a D&D player as well. "Mom calls me Sebby, thinks it's cute."

"It is cute," I disagreed with him, getting a faint blush. "Would you prefer 'Bastian?" His blush got darker and he looked away shyly. I might be the first girl to tease him like this, so I gave his some slack. "Okay, Sebastian it is… sooo… motorcycle?"

"Yeah." I seemed to have activated his shyness button.

Thinking quick, I went with what I knew he'd want to talk about. "Computer? What kind?"

"Custom built," he replied a little easier. "i7, 32 gigs of DDR4 RAM, GTX980, Formula VI Ranger. Asus, naturally."

"Naturally." I grinned. "Liquid cooled?"

"Of course!" He grinned now, fully meaning it this time. "Would you like a ride into town?"

"I'd love one." I accepted the helmet he gave me.

The ride was rather short, but still fun. Going down the mountain path into the city was quite an experience on a motorcycle for sure. We made it to the saloon a while later and parked next to a blond guy leaning against the fence. He sported a faded shirt with a worn blue jean jacket and had fully spiked hair, almost reminding me of a super sayajin. Sebastian put the kickstand down and let me carefully get off before taking off his helmet. "Hey Sam," he greeted.

"Yo!" The man greeted back as I struggled with my helmet. "Who's the new guy?"

"Girl," I corrected before giving up and letting Sebastian undo the strap for me. I had apparently put it on wrong.

"Whoa really?" Sam asked, amused. "Sorry, you look like a guy with a helmet on."

"Tactful," Sebastian commented, putting the helmets on the handlebars. Back in the city they would be stolen for sure. Here, though, he didn't even take the key out of it before we all started walking to the saloon doors.

"So," Sam tried again. "Who's your girlfriend?"

"We just met," he replied, looking up. "She's Kim, the new farmer in town."

"Oh yeah!" Sam pointed at me. "I heard! Welcome to Stardew!" He opened the door and gave it a push to stay open for me. Sebastian quickly put out a hand to catch it and let me go ahead. "Woo! Racking in those points!" Sam cheered at him.

"Ignore him," Sebastian requested of me.

"Already am," I replied teasingly. There weren't that many people at the Saloon yet, so I followed them to a back room with the word 'ARCADE' flashing above it. Inside was a large room, slightly less lit than the rest of the restaurant. There were a few tables scattered around, but it was mainly a collection of pool tables and various arcade machines along the wall. One of them was taken by Abigail, who had changed out of her normal attire in favor of a mini skirt and leggings, paired with a matching sleeveless top and light jacket.

The woman suddenly groaned and smacked the machine before turning to see us. "Hey guys."

"Die again?" Sam asked before hopping to sit on a table and rest his feet on a chair.

"Gus has it set to maximum difficulty," Abigail complained.

I looked at the arcade and read the title. "Wait, doesn't Legend of the Prairie King only have one difficulty setting?"

"Yeah, _very hard_." The girl protested. "Kim, come order a pizza with me."

"I would _love_ a pizza," I agreed, walking back to the main area with them.

"My usual!" Sam called out after us.

I saw Leah walk in and I waved to her, getting one back. "Leah is so thin and pretty," Abigail mused beside me. "Makes me a little jealous, just between us."

"You're just fine," I comforted her as the girl made it to us. "Hi Leah!"

"Hi!" She smiled happily. "How are you feeling?"

"Just fine," I replied back. "Thanks again for the other day."

"Anytime! But, well, I'd prefer you not to be sick."

Abigail turned from Gus to look at me. "Are you sick?"

"Not anymore," I confirmed. "Leah nursed me back to health."

"Good job, Leah!" Abigail gave her a hi-five before looking at me. "Did she make you eat her vegetarian soup?"

Leah pouted. "I'm not a vegetarian."

"And I'm blonde," Abigail teased. "She only eats fish, " she told me.

I looked at Leah, who didn't deny it. "Well, you know," She spoke shyly. "Marnie raises cows and chickens and it just… doesn't feel right to eat them, you know?"

"No," I disagreed with a smile. "Gimme a steak any day." Before I could go on anymore, a new voice perked my interest and I turned to see a blue haired girl shaking a cocktail before pouring it out for Maru, who raised it to me in a small toast.

The blue haired girl came over to us and introduced herself. "Hi! I'm Emily, nice to finally meet you Kim!"

"I'll catch up," I told the girls, who went back to the arcade area after ordering. "Nice to meet you Emily." I shook her hand. "I've met so many people lately, it's hard to keep up with who I have and haven't gotten to talk to yet."

"Oh I bet!" She laughed. A jingle came and we saw a new person enter the bar. "Speaking of not talking, there's Shane!"

"Less talk, more alcohol." He complained, sitting at the bar next to me.

Emily instead shook her finger at him. "tstk, tsk, you're supposed to share a drink with the new lady in town. It's proper bar etiquette." I looked over at Shane, who didn't look too willing to buy me a drink. "I'm not taking no for an answer," Emily warned.

"Fine," Shane grumbled. "Give us two of the girliest things you have."

My eyebrows raised at Emily, who reached under the table and poured two small cups of an amber liquid. "Here you go. Two girly drinks on the house."

Shane picked up the glass by the rim and looked at it. "This is straight whiskey," he commented.

I answered before Emily could, leaning my glass to him for a toast. "Maybe you should woman up and drink it?"

Shane looked at me hard a moment before tinking his glass to mine. We both tilted the cups back and drank, him placing his on the table slightly before me. When I didn't gag or anything, he smirked. "A girl after my own heart." With that he put some money on the table. "Here's to my tab and whatever that little lass wants next. My treat."

"Rum and please," I told Emily, who started to work on it. "Thanks Shane."

"Don't mention it…"

"Kim," I reintroduced myself.

"Kim." He nodded. "I won't remember that after tonight, but here's to you." He handed me my finished drink. "Now go play with the kiddos, I'm going to get wasted."

"Call me if you need another girly drink," I patted him on the shoulder as I passed. "I'll buy next time." I saw Harvey on the way back to the arcade and gave him a small wave to catch his attention. "Harvey, thank you for the help the other day! I don't know how to repay you… other than repaying you!" I chuckled at my own joke lamely.

"Just doing my job," he waved it off. "It brings me joy to help people, it just makes me happy. Are you feeling better?"

"Lots!" I nodded. "Thank you so much. I'll come by the clinic next time I'm in town and get you settled up for the house call and medicine."

"No rush," Harvey raised a cup of coffee at me in a little salute and I continued along my way.

When I made it back to the arcade I saw Sam and Sebastian playing pool together. Sam was looking rather displeased while Sebastian had a smug air about him. Abigail was playing the arcade again while Leah was sitting on one of the love seats lining the walls watching the T.V. I chose to sit by Leah, as she looked rather lonely by herself.

"Hey there," Leah moved so I could plot down next to her.

"Hey," I offered her my cup. "Drink?"

"Yes, please. I'm really thirsty." She took it from me and turned it back, only to cough slightly and gasp. "What is that?"

"Rum and ," I giggled.

Sebastian turned and leaned against the table, looking over at us. "Leah doesn't drink, she has a tolerance in the negatives."

"Worse than that," Abigail called out from the arcade.

I grinned at her. "Want the rest of it?"

Shaking her head, she handed it back. "No thank you, I'd get too drunk to walk back."

I nodded and sipped on my drink some more, looking up at the television set mounted to the wall near the ceiling. Nothing was really interesting so I slowly finished off my drink. When Emily came over with our food, we all gathered round a table and I forced Leah to each some of my pizza since it was just a cheese one. We all toasted our drinks and re-ordered more. This time I got a stronger mix at the urging of my friends.

Gus came to deliver them this time, placing the cups all around. We all made a grab for them and held them up. "To a new friend," Sam declared.

"To a new friend!" Everyone echoed.

"Drink it all in one go!" Sam continued, putting an arm around Sebastian. "Ready?"

"Ready!" I ginned.

We all turned our cups up and chugged them back. Setting mine down, I blinked at it, as I only felt fizz tingling my nose. Next to me I heard Leah burp rather loudly and fan herself. "That tasted funny," she mused.

I slowly leaned over and picked up her cup. Everyone watched me as I turned it all the way up to get some of whatever was left. After tasting it, my eyes widened slightly. "Leah, you drank mine."

"Uh oh…" The small words made the table all laugh together happily.

"This is going to be a fun night," Abigail decided as Maru peeked her head in the room. "Maru! Come join us, Leah is already drunk."

"Am not," she tried to protest, but hiccupped midway. "Oh man…"

The night seemed to go on forever. I can't really remember the last time I had such a good time with friends. Of course I had gone out with people around the office, but that had felt like a more… adult gathering than a bunch of friends just hanging out. This time I had the pleasure of meeting a few new people around the town as well. The names were blurring together as I got tipsy and then flat out drunk. Although I didn't like being wasted, I felt safe around these people.

Marnie, the one with the animal farm close to mine, came to fetch Leah to take her home along with Shane. After seeing me, she insisted that I come along as well, which I did. Leah was still passed out on a couch from before so I leaned down to scoop her up and carry her. This backfired drastically when I couldn't even lift her and instead fell forward on top of the girl. The crowd gave collective claps of approval and I struggled to even stand up straight.

Shane came to my rescue and picked Leah up with one arm, draping her over his shoulder. The girl was stone cold drunk, even from the single drink she had paired with only two shots once her better judgment had left the room. I stumbled after them and got in the truck once I could manage to step up into it. "Thank you," I told Marnie gratefully as I sat down again.

"Oh don't mention it," she beamed at me. "I'm always happy to give people a ride home, it's almost my job on Friday nights!"

I beamed at her stupidly and closed my eyes. When they opened again I somehow managed to realize we were at my farm. Leah was already gone and Shane was helping me step down. "Easy there," he told me, putting an arm over my shoulders to help my stumble to the door. "What did you drink?"

"Lots," I answered lamely. "Thank you."

"Yeah, sure."

"You're a nice guy," I decided to tell him as he basically laid me against my door. "I think you don't want people to know, but I know."

"No, you really don't." His tone somehow made it through my drunken stupor and I could see the sadness on his face. Not wanting to leave it like that, I spoke again before he could leave.

"What do you like to eat?"

"What?"

"Eat," I said again, trying to form the words.

"…Spicy things."

"I'll… I'll grow you some peppers." I decided then and there. "We'll share a drink, and…and eat hot wings made from them."

He looked at me before shrugging and walking back to the truck. "Do whatever you want."

I somehow managed to open my door and stumble into the house. I could barely make out the Junimo running around everywhere as I staggered to my bedroom. I slowly took off my shirt and had to resort to simply pulling my bra over my head, as my fingers couldn't quite seem to undo the second hook on it. I put on a simple spaghetti strap tank top to cover myself and literally peeled down my jeans. Now ready for bed, I crawled into it and sighed out happily. "Tonight was a good night," I told the room before completely falling asleep all at once.


	6. Chapter 6

The first thing I noticed when I awoke was the splitting headache consuming my skull. I could barely open my eyes and there was a pounding coming from somewhere that ripped through my body with every sound. I had never drank that much before, and I was really feeling it. The pounding came again and I groaned, almost falling out of bed and stumbling to the front door to see who it was.

 **Stardust VI**

 **By: Satashi**

I opened the door slowly, eyes mostly closed to protect myself from the sunlight threatening to make my headache take me over completely. "Whoa!" I heard a voice say and then placed it to Sam. "Good morning to you too!"

"Not so loud," I managed to croak out, leaning against the doorframe. "I'm hung-over… how are you so cheery?"

"Who wouldn't be at a sight like that," he flirted shamelessly. I smiled lightly, or at least attempted to. "Maru wanted me to see If anyone needed some medicine to help their hangover," he explained to me. "I stayed with Sebastian last night so I offered to drop it off to you and Leah on my way home."

"Yes, please, I'd love some." I accepted the small bottle gratefully. "Please forgive me for not inviting you in, I'm in no state to entertain…"

"This is entertaining enough!"

I wasn't used to being hit on, so I just managed out a lopsided grin at him. "Thanks Sam, I'll see you later?"

"You go it," He seemed a little disappointed to leave and I caught his eyes glancing down for just a moment before snapping back up. Laughing, I gave a small wave and closed the door.

I instantly opened the bottle and stumbled back to my bedroom to get some water off my nightstand. I opened the bottle and took the pills quickly. "I'm so hung over," I told the blue Junimo who had hopped onto my bed next to me. It was a little odd sharing my house with mystical creatures, but they were so… comforting… that I really didn't mind it. "I better get going and prepare for the day… I want to plant some more and see how everything is growing…" I slowly stood and moved to grab a pair of overalls to step into. As I pulled them up, I suddenly had a thought. ' _Wait…If I'm putting my pants on now…_ ' I looked toward the front door. ' _What was I wearing earlier?_ '

* * *

I knew the Junimo were helping my crops, but I couldn't quite figure out how. The seeds I had planted earlier were already starting to seriously sprout, and the soil was very rich with minerals for them to feast on. I put in my hard work as well, using my one tool to do all I could. Without a good pick to break up rocks and a hatchet to cut down the little saplings everywhere, I had to use my hoe for everything. The work was hard and tedious, but I felt obligated to give it my all. So far I had the area in front of my house all taken care of, tilled and planted.

As I extended my gardens, I mixed different seeds and watered them enough to get them going. It became a rhythm to me as I went. Striking the ground, pulling back, repeat. Move the rocks, pull the weeds, strike the ground, plant the seeds. This stayed with me until my stomach introduced a new tempo. Sighing out, I wiped the sweat from my forehead with a rag. ' _And it's still cool outside… how will I last in the summer?_ '

The thought made me get a small glimpse of a memory from way back when. Curious, I followed my instincts and moved to the far side of the farm. Past the weeds, tall grass, and general neglect, I found a group of trees packed to the brim with fruit. "That's right…" I spoke aloud, walking up to them in awe. "The fruit trees were in the back, where the best sunlight was…"

I was suddenly filled with energy, jogging to each tree to pick up one of its bounties off the ground. I then used my watering can to rinse them off and try a bite of each. The cherries were amazingly delightful, and so fresh it made me moan out in appreciation. An apricot was consumed next and the pit spat out to bounce off the ground. I wasn't a huge fan of them, but I could seriously appreciate the flavor. I saved the best two for last, breaking open an orange so juicy it ran down my arm. A peach was bitten into next, just as juicy. Wiping my face with my arm, I grinned up at them. I knew just what to do with these.

It had taken me a few hours, but I managed to find my grandpa's old wooden crates in the shed. Thankfully they had been treated to avoid decay and were correctly put up from the last fall harvest they were used. Not all of them made it, but the ones near the center of the stacks were well protected and offered me a good storage utility.

Just as soon as I got the last crate settled, I heard the sounds of a truck pulling up into the driveway. Pierre and Gus both got out and walked up to me, smiling broadly at the bounty in front of them. "Welcome!" I called out, throwing my arms out wide. "My first harvest of fruit. I don't have any vegetables yet, but I really couldn't let these go to waste after I found them."

"Absolutely amazing," Gus thought aloud while looking at them. "Much better than Joja's fruit, and I won't have that sick feeling when I'm forced to buy from them."

Pierre picked up a peach and looked over at me. "May I?"

I nodded at him. "Absolutely!" I watched him bite into it and lean forward as it exploded in juice.

"Mmn!" He nodded a few times. "Yes. Yes, these will sell faster than I could stock them…" He looked at Gus. "We're going to have to make a deal on these."

"I'd say," Gus mused, looking at the cherries. "Emily makes some amazing cherry pie, I could… ohhh… I'll give you ten gold per pound."

"I'll give a half gold each for peaches"

"Don't be cheap, Pierre, they're worth at least one." Gus protested. They each looked at each other and took a breath. "Halfsies?"

"It can't be helped." They nodded at each other. "We'll take everything."

I looked at Pierre in shock. "E-Everything?"

Gus smiled at me. "You heard the man. Ideally we would like about this much each, but it's your first harvest so this will have to do." I could tell he seemed more than happy at this. "How much for it all?"

"I.. I don't even know… I just…" I couldn't believe this was actually happening. "I think… I think the prices are… I mean…" I was totally lost. I was expecting to sell maybe a basket of mixed to each at most.

Pierre laughed and put a hand on my shoulder. "I know the average prices, and you'll see what I mark them up for at my store. We can make arrangements to find a nice healthy middle ground."

"And we will all be fair and happy," Gus added in. "Money that stays in Stardew makes us all that much happier." He looked over at the baskets by my door. "What about those? The mixed ones."

"Oh, those are for debt repayment." I told them happily. "Some friends had to really go out of their way to help me when I first got here… This is my thank you to them."

After some massive business talk and settling up, I found my purse pleasantly filled and a ride secured to go into town in the back of Gus's truck. We stopped by Leah's cottage first and I picked up one basket of mixed fruit to carry to her door. I noticed the lights were off and it was silent inside. Knocking lightly, I waited a while before noticing a small chalkboard next to the door. It was outlined with wooden carvings of birds and seeds. Leah's name was expertly chiseled out in fancy handwriting and a twine string hung down next to it with a chalk stick tied in a pretty bow. Smiling, I wrote a small message and drew a heart around it before leaving the basket by the door.

My second stop was a little out of the way for them, but they gladly accepted my request. A semi long drive took us up the mountain area where Robin's house and mill was. This was where I waved goodbye to them and made my way in. Upon entering, I saw Robin look up from her desk and smile at me in welcome. "Hey there Kim! I see you've been hard at it!"

"I have," I confirmed. "In fact, this basket here is for you and your family. A thanks for all the help."

"Awww!" Robin moved out from behind the desk and for a moment thought she would hug me. "You're so sweet! It was nothing really, you even helped me cut the trees down so you more than paid for them. I won't say no though!" She added the last part on quickly.

At that moment, the door opened again and Marnie came in. "Good afternoon!" She greeted merrily. "I saw Kim come here while I was out and wanted to try and catch her."

"What's up?" I asked curiously.

"Well, a friend of mine has been borrowing my farm while his fence was repaired. As a way of saying thank you, he gave me a horse. I already have a male purebred though, so I don't really need another. Too many males makes for mixed breeding, you know." I nodded, despite not knowing if that was true or not. "Anyway, as a welcome to the Valley, I was going to offer it to you."

"I… want it, but I don't have a place for it."

"Wasn't there a small stable on your farm?" Robin asked me.

"Yeah, but it's hardly in the shape to… oh!" I suddenly caught on. " I just so happen to know a carpenter!"

"You do!?" Robin asked playfully. "I bet she would gladly fix up that little stable for you."

I turned back to Marnie and nodded thankfully. "I'd love it. Would it be possible to wait until the stable was fixed?"

"Absolutely. Just come by whenever you're ready to pick him up." She waved at us both and went back outside with a goodbye.

"Well that worked out wonderfully," I mused. "I get transportation and you get some work. Can't really go against that."

"I'd like to get an idea of what I'm going to work with so I can give you a price." She reached back to grab her truck keys. "Do you need a ride back?"

"Actually I was going to head over to the adventure guild and see about going into the mines before it gets too late. I lost a backpack in there next to some ore I'd love to turn into a blade for those handles you made me."

"Whenever you're ready, they're good to go." Robin waved at me as she went to the door. "Thanks again, this was an amazing gift." She grabbed an orange on her way and held it up as a small sign of appreciation.

I made my way out and too the nearby mines, walking along the rim of the small pond nearby. It took a few minutes of walking but I finally made it to the small cabin. I could hear people out behind the fenced off area training, and I smiled lightly. Being an adventurer would be really cool, if I wasn't already discovering a new life as it was.

Upon entering, I saw a few people talking at tables while drinking. Others were telling stories of battles from other towns and caves, while others still told about defending larger city outskirts. It was true that the way of the adventurer was slowly dwindling away, but the world still needed protecting, even if we were advancing quickly with our technology. This town was a perfect example of this, and the rustic ways only endeared it to me even more.

"Welcome lass," An older man greeted me. He looked weathered and battle worn. An eye patch covered his left eye and a scar was visible around it. "What can we do for you?"

"I need an escort." My words made a few people's eyes turn toward me. "Just into the mines a little bit. I lost a bag near the entrance." I heard a few chuckles and most went back to what they had been doing, clearly not interested in such a small feat.

"Just inside the entrance, hmm?" He scratched his goatee and thought. "I have someone who could use the experience, a new recruit. If you don't plan on going any deeper than that, she'll work just fine. Be warned though, she isn't experienced . You only have an hour before we send another in after you, and that'll be extra. If you're okay with that, it'll be twenty gold."

Twenty gold was almost laughable to hire an adventurer, but the way he was talking made me get my hopes up. "What's her name?"

"Abigail."

I grinned, reaching into my backpack to pull out a purse. "Deal." I put the twenty down and watched him stand up.

"Wait here." The man walked out back and through the door. I waited for a few moments, looking around at the people inside. A few made eye contact while others just ignored me. After a few more minutes the man came back with the purple haired girl in tow. She had on light leather armor, tinted black and purple. A matching set of light cotton fabric was under that and two matching daggers were on either side of her waist. "Here's your employer."

"Kim!" She looked positively shocked.

"Hi." I waved simply, grinning. "Ready?"

"Your half," the man stated, tossing a coin to her. Abigail caught it and looked at it in her palm for a brief moment before nodding at it.

"Ready," she confirmed.

There were a collective shouts of good luck as we left the cabin and into the late afternoon air. The sun was threatening to set, casting it's fading red color out over the lake. A small gust of wind blew our hair back as we walked to the mines, and I inhaled deeply to savor it. "Not going to ask?" Abigail finally voiced as we made it to the entrance.

"Ask what?" I replied simply, getting a lantern and lighting it. "I hired an adventurer and I got a friend at no extra cost."

Abigail took a deep breath as well, looking at the cave entrance. "Okay… I'm ready." She took a hesitant step forward, followed by a more determined one. We walked together in silence for a few moments before a slime came into view. I stopped walking and held the lantern high. "Focus," I heard her speak to herself. "Watch…" She slowly unsheathed both of her daggers and held them up. "Be ready to move…" Her words barely made it to me now as she advanced.

The slime looked just as cute as ever, hopping and rolling on the ground towards us. I inched forward carefully, giving her the needed light. The two finally made it close enough to each other for the slime's eyes to narrow and lunge forward. Abigail reacted in time, slashing with her right hand and then her left. Two misses later and the slime landed between us, looking at me. Swallowing, I stood my ground.

A clank was heard as a throwing dagger ricocheted harmlessly off the ground near the smile, who turned back to Abigail. It hopped once, but the girl was already lunging forward, slicing low and cleaving it in half. We both stood in silence a moment before she turned to look at me fully, eyes wide and a smile full on her face. "Did you _see_ that!?" She asked excitedly, hopping in place. "I just took out a slime!" She was almost bursting with energy. "I did it, I really did it!"

"You most certainly did!" I agreed, almost dropping the lantern when she tackled me in a tight hug. "Good job." I praised , returning it with my free hand. "Abigail the Adventurer." My words made her giggle and she let go of me.

"Okay," she said determined. " Let's get your bag." The rest of the passage was uneventful, and we found my old backpack right where we left it. "Mission successful," she spoke proudly as I shoved the ore into the bag and strapped it on. "Let's get out of here before-" Her words were cut off as a slopping sound came to our ears. We both swallowed thickly as a large slime rolled from around a crevice in the wall. "Here we go…" she readied both her daggers. "I got this… I got this…"

Abigail ran forward this time, letting out a small battle cry as she did so. A tentacle lash was dodged and to my surprise she managed to lop off the appendage as well. It fell onto the ground and splattered, lifeless. The slime didn't seem too phased by this, however, and simply made a few more to attack with. My protector dodged again and again, using her blades to slowly but surely shrink the jelly monster down.

I was getting excited from this, silently cheering her on from the sidelines. This, however, made us both miss the tentacle slithering along the floor until it managed to loop around her ankle and jerk her off her feet. Abigail tumbled hard and I heard a sickening thunk as her head hit the ground. She went limp instantly and I could tell she was struggling to focus. The slime monster lifted her above itself and opened its mouth, bringing her down to consume.

Not thinking, I grabbed my pickax from before and threw it as hard as I could. I managed to land it right where it's eyes were and it hollered out a bubbling sound, dropping Abigail to the ground. The girl landed and gasped, rolling over to her stomach and pushing herself up. Shaking her head twice to clear it, she grabbed her daggers and ran forward again, thrusting them both into the face of the monster.

The slime blew apart and my friend fell down, splattered in the jelly like gunk of the defeated monster. I ran to her quickly and stood before her as she looked over at me. "I… I did it! I beat a king slime!" She jumped up, slinging jelly everywhere. "I did it Kim! I am now an official member of the guild!" She jumped in place again, and I smiled at her. The torchlight reflected off her figure as she sheathed both her daggers and put her hands on her hips triumphantly. The jelly slowly dripped from her body and in that moment I couldn't help but realize how… sexy… she looked like that. The thought instantly made me blush and I quickly looked away.

We made it out of the cave easily, walking back to the guild where they made a call of triumph when the goo-covered girl entered. Proudly, she walked over to the man behind the counter and placed a large golden coin on it. A king slime coin, somehow made by the jellies when they combined. The one eyed man picked it up and nodded proudly. The whole cabin watched as he walked over to a chart of names on the wall near the desk. Abigail's name was written on it near the end and with a hammer and nail, he pinned the coin under it, marking it as a trophy of hers. Cheers erupted and several people came to pat the girl on the back and celebrate. One even lifted her up onto his shoulders and the group called out her name.

Abigail looked more thrilled than I had ever seen her, eyes shining brightly as she meekly held up her hand in triumph. She looked my way and I smiled at her, nodding lightly." The motion was simple, but made her overwhelm with emotion. Her eyes closed and I saw some tears of happiness come to them as she held up both hands triumphantly. She had finally achieved her dream, and she deserved all of it.


	7. Chapter 7

I grunted as I cleared out yet another rock in my field. My pickax was up to the task, but my arms were starting to give out. Pressing on, I pulled back with all my might and managed to uproot the buried thing, leaving a small chunk out of the ground. My pick was a great cast of iron and the handle was just perfect for my hands. Of course I had melted the ore into ingots and rough forged it at Clint's black smithery. It wasn't perfect, but my Junimo friends had worked their magic into it for me. I could see them now, playing around the plants that were growing alarmingly fast. They seemed so happy to have the farm going again, and they only asked so very little in return, mainly just some crops to eat. I wasn't sure if they were pets or housemates still, but I was really considering them all my mythical friends at this point.

 **Stardust VII**

 **By: Satashi**

Robin was walking over to me, so I steered my wheel barrel full of rocks and sticks closer to her to meet half way. "You're done!" She exclaimed, flipping her hammer with one hand before catching it and sheathing it on her jeans. "A one horse shelter fit for a king." She moved her hand back to show it off and I grinned to myself. It was perfect for my needs. It had a trough for food, a section covered from the rain for some hay, and a watering trough as well on the side. My farm was pretty much fenced off around the perimeter so I could let it roam free until I needed it . "What do you think?"

"Love it," I confirmed. It had taken several days to fix, as it was barely able to stand on its own, but was completely worth it. "Thank you!"

"You're very welcome." Robin smiled. "It feels good making a structure again, I've been primarily making furniture lately. " He wiped sweat off her face. "But it's really hot out, how are you going to last in the summer?"

"I asked myself that already," I laughed. "I'll be fine. There's a pond down there, I'll just take a dip if it gets too hot."

"Sounds good. Would you like a ride to Marnie's farm?"

"I would love one." I confirmed, heading over to the truck with her. The ride was short, but cut my travel time down by almost ninety percent. Waving to her, I headed over to Marnie's barn.

"She's in town," I heard a voice tell me. I looked over near Leah's cottage and saw an old man sitting on a small foldable chair. He held a fishing pole with both hands, skillfully working it to attract fish. "Will probably be back later tonight. Why don't you pull up a seat and fish with me?"

I made my way over to the man by the lake. "Hi, I'm Kim."

"New farmer," the man nodded wisely. "Leah has told me about you. Good lass, that one. Lets me fish here all the time. Good place to catch them as they move with the stream."

"I see…"

"Willy. I run the fish store by the docks." He reached down and offered me a spare pole next to him. "Come, toss a line." I really felt like I wanted to. Accepting his offer, I picked up the pole and threaded a worm on the hook. With a flick of my wrist, I sent it soaring out into the waters. Willy nodded as I sat on the grass next to him, gently reeling in the line. "You've done this before."

"Company fishing trips, pretty much mandatory to go on if you wanted your vacation time. It wasn't really fun, but I did enjoy fishing sometimes." I actually felt a small nibble and I leaned forward.

"Don't rush it," Willy advised. "Let it hook first."

I resisted the urge to jump the gun and waited a few seconds more before I felt a sharp tug. "Got it!" I stood and started to fight the fish.

"Move the rod down and reel in, then pull back," Willy spoke calmly. I took his advice and found it much easier to do so. "That'a girl," he praised while getting a net. I managed to pull it out of the water and gawked at the size of it. "A mighty fine catch." He netted the fish and dispatched it with a quick flick of a knife.

"Wow! Of all the _luck_!"

"Some people just have it," Willy told me. "You have it. I can tell."

"Thank you." I looked at the fish as he de-hooked it. "You keep it, I live far away and it wouldn't be good to just carry it all the way back."

"I think you should cook it. I mean it gave its life to you, the least you can do is make a meal." He nodded back at Leah's cottage. "She's been in there all day painting. I don't think she's eaten anything at all."

I looked over my shoulder and say Leah's frame in front of an easel, a brush in hand. "Really? All day?"

Willy nodded slowly and recast his line. "Go ahead, she knows how to cook it. I'm going to finish up here in a moment anyway."

"Well... okay. Thank you Willy." I handed him the pole but he shook his head.

"Keep it. If one more person takes up the art of fishing, my life would mean that much more."

"… Thank you, I will." I accepted the offer. "I'll get this cooking. Good luck out here." The man nodded at me and I turned to go back to the cottage. A soft knock made Leah come to the door and answer it with a smile. She had multiple colors of paint on her hands and even a streak of blue across her face. Seeing me hold up a fish, she laughed. "I brought dinner!" I joked.

"I know _just_ what to do with that." Leah invited me in and closed the door. "Sorry my place is a mess, I've been really in the mood lately."

"Mood? Oh, artistic mood?"

"Yeah!" Leah made room on her cutting board and took the fish from me. She began butchering it so quick I was worried for her fingers. She didn't nick herself at all, though, and before even a couple of minutes passed it was de-scaled and filleted.

"You're really good at that." I couldn't help but praise.

"I love seafood." She began getting things down from her cabinets. "You don't have to stand there, make yourself at home! I'll have us dinner before you know it."

"Oh, I didn't mean to imply you had to cook for me-"

"I know, and I want to."

I happily looked around her house, amazed at all the artwork and sculptures everywhere. "Wow… These all look so… so nice!" I felt a little lame at my lack of words. "This is wood… You carved this out of wood?" I gazed at the statue of a fox. I could vividly see the features of its face and even teeth. The fur was so lifelike, I could hardly believe it. "Wow…"

"Thank you!" Leah called out happily. "I love working with wood, it's so… so easy." She laughed. "I mean it works well with you, giving enough to not make as many mistakes… you know?"

"I don't, but I understand." I breathed out, going from one display to the next. "You have so many, do you sell them?"

"I… I'm kind of shy. I mean… I've sold some before, and a few online… but…"

"But what?" I asked defensively. "You're amazing! People need to see this!"

Leah looked positively flattered. "Wow… Thank you Kim… I don't know what to say…"

"Say you'll seriously consider selling some, if that's what you intended to do."

"I mean... it would make me happy…" She was blushing now, and was focusing more on the fish. "I'm… not really used to getting encouragement like this."

"Why ever not?" I asked, shocked. "You're like…" My mind went blank. "Like… Leonardo Dicaprio of our time."

"Da Vinci?" She asked, amused.

"Yes, him." I felt my cheeks coloring. "You know who I meant."

"I did," a giggle. "And thank you."

I looked around a little more, focusing on each painting and asking a little something about each one. They ranged from scenery to animals to a few self portraits. There were printed pictures everywhere, clothes pinned to various canvas and paper. I noticed a printer hooked into a laptop on her desk, filled with small picture papers. "You like taking pictures?"

"Not really taking pictures, but having them really motivates me. I enjoy seeing them." I hummed at that and picked up her digital camera. Turning to her, I smiled.

"Say cheese!" When she looked I snapped the picture, much to her distress.

"Don't take a picture of me, I'm a mess! And covered in fish guts!" Her words made me take another picture and laugh at her.

"Can I print these?"

"NO!"

"Plug in here?" I continued, putting the cable in and getting her software instantly pop up on the small screen.

"No, no!" She was laughing though.

"Annnd print!" I declared, hitting the button and making the pictures come to life.

"You're so _mean_!"

I watched the images come out and happily picked them up. "These are going on my nightstand." I informed her, getting a mean but playful glare. "I'll call them…" I held them out at arm's length and spoke in my best art admirer voice. "The many scales of Leah." This earned a full out laugh from her.

"You are such a _dork_!" She finally managed to put the fish in her oven and came over to me. "Let me see?" When I looked at her doubtfully she shook her head. "I'll give them back…Oh my, I look hideous!"

"That's true art!" I protested. "You look… " I sniffed. "Fishy. Yes, fishy." This got another laugh and we both sat down at her table. "For real, though, I love all this stuff. It's so neat to be able to see things like this."

"Really?" She put both elbows on the table and propped her chin up on her palms. "You mean it?"

"Mmhmm." I nodded to emphasize it. "What? You're grinning ear to ear."

"I just… it feels nice… hearing someone say that."

"Should I continue then?" I teased her, getting a quick shaking of the head." In that case, what's your favorite thing to do?"

"A tie between wood working and painting, I think. Maybe I like wood better because I can always count on wood to be there."

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" She looked to the side a little, cheeks coloring. "Things I want to paint aren't always… there to look at."

This perked my curiosity. "Like what?"

"Well… I want to paint someone…" She looked down at her thumbs and twiddled them. "… Nude."

"Oh there's nothing wrong with that, lots of artist do it!" I waved it off. "That's just fine! It would look wonderful. I promise."

"Yeah, but… I can't just ask someone ' _Hey, do you want to strip down naked and lay on my bed_?' you know?"

Oh yeah, that was true. "I guess not…Okay, I can see that… but what about online?"

"It's not the same. I came here to _see_ things; to get inspired from what was around me. I don't want to look at a computer screen and try to paint something off it."

"Well… don't give up. I'm sure whoever you ask would understand and be thrilled to have the opportunity." I nodded to myself.

Leah looked at me for a moment and when I was about to ask what she was thinking, the oven buzzer went off. "Food!" She exclaimed joyfully, hopping up and trotting into the kitchen. "It needs a few more minutes, this is the salad buzzer."

"Salad buzzer?"

"Just enough time to make a fresh salad before it's complete!" She worked quickly, chopping lettuce and lots of fixings for it. "I love a good salad, I eat one a day at least."

"Oh yeah, vegetarian."

"Not vegetarian," she corrected. "I eat fish. That's not vegetarian."

"Cow?"

"Nope."

"Chicken?"

"Nope, nope." Leah tossed the salad in some of her home made dressing.

"Pork."

"I won't turn it down. I've never named a pig before."

I could live with that. "Okay. Not vegetarian." She called me over and made me a plate. Together we ate dinner and talked constantly about everything and nothing. I learned a little about the city she was in before moving here, and in turn I shared a little of my boring office life as well. It was already starting to become late before I realized I still needed to talk to Marnie before she closed down for the night, if she hadn't already. My friend actually looked a little depressed at this and pouted slightly. "I had a lot of fun. Thank you for the nice meal." She walked me over to the door slowly.

"Thank you for bringing it to me to make for us. I had a really nice time." She rolled on her heels, hands clasped behind her back. "I haven't really spent time with someone since I left the city…"

"Let's do it again then."

"Sure!" she agreed at once. "It's a date then."

I couldn't help but smile at her choice of words. "A date then." She took a hold of my arm when I was about to leave.

"Hey, uhm, a question? " I looked at her and she gazed right into my eyes, a little unsure of herself. "Would you… like to strip down naked and lay on my bed sometime?"

I instantly felt hot and I could tell my face was rapidly turning red. "I… I mean…" She looked a little scared, but at the same time really hopeful. "I…" I covered my chest with one hand and looked down in embarrassment. "No.. I mean… I'm… flat chested and…"

"I think that's wonderful."

"And… and my hips are big…"

"Perfect figure."

I swallowed, too shy to really look at her. "I'm… super embarrassed…"

"… It's okay, I won't pressure you." Leah's voice was clearly hurt. "Just forget I asked, okay?"

"W-wait!" I couldn't bear that sound. She was way too happy to sound like that. "H-how about… underwear? And… maybe after that… we could try?"

"Is… that really ok?" She leaned down a bit and moved forward to make me look her in the eyes. "Please don't agree if you don't want to…"

"I'm super shy, but… I think it would be okay for now… I can't promise nude later but…" I fidgeted a little. "I'm a little flattered you asked me so… I'd like to try… you helped me so much as well, I can try to help you as well, right? That's what we do."

Her bright blue eyes looked a little moist. "I've never had someone really try for me like this before… Thank you."

"Yeah…" We both looked at each other a moment before giving a small laugh. "When should we do it?"

"Whenever you want to. Just come by and we'll go from there. No rush, let's make it as natural as possible. There is a feeling with art that's important. Doesn't matter if it's tomorrow or a few months from now, just knowing I have someone so awesome with me is enough to fuel my art for a long, long time."

I felt a little overwhelmed by her sincere words. "I'm… just posing? It's not that big of a deal?"

Shaking her head, she tried to explain a little to me. "There's a story behind it. Let's just say for now, it's just so very encouraging. Maybe I can make a good living off of this after all… " Wiping her eyes, she quickly turned into her normal happy self again. "Now go say hi to Marnie for me and get your horse!"

"Yes ma'am!" I saluted her playfully. Grabbing my new fishing rod by her door, I left with a smile.

* * *

I decided to take my new horse into town once my fruit trees had a few more offerings. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make a few good gold pieces. My horse came to me when I gave a loud, sharp whistle and stopped a little in front of me. "Good boy," I praised him. I saddled him quickly and loaded up the back with a custom made basket to hold the weight evenly over his body. "Not too bad is it?" He shook his head and made a noise as if he understood, so I took that as a positive sign. "Alright then, to town!"

The track to town was so much easier now, and I was so relieved not to have to walk it anymore. I chose to go the south passage and grinned when I saw Marnie outside talking with her cows. As I approached, I took out a over ripened peach and leaned over a bit to offer it to her. She gave me a bright smile and accepted it with a thank you and good afternoon. As I continued on I saw Willy wishing by Leah's house so I tossed him an orange. The man nodded his thanks and I continued along, seeing Leah out decorating her bushes with some more spring flowers and wooden birds carved from wood. As I passed, I gave her an apple, which she took gratefully. "What's your favorite color?" I asked curiously.

The question took her off guard and she chewed on her bite a moment before answering. "Light emerald green, why?"

"Just curious." I waved at her and got one back before popping the reigns lightly to make my horse pick up speed. As I went, I saw Sam and Sebastian hanging out together but they were far enough away that I couldn't offer them anything. I continued on into the village and stopped at Pierre's shop. Leading my horse around back, I tied him off. "Stay here for a bit." I asked him while unloading the baskets. Pouring them both into one, I carried it inside. "Delivery!" I called out happily.

"Kim, hello!" Pierre greeted me. "Are those the newest harvest?"

"Yeah, not a whole lot but enough to restock you a bit. I think I'll have to do one type at a time and let the others grow while those sell… It'll keep you supplied longer with fresh fruit and will allow my trees time to regrow."

"That would be fine, I can make a sale out of it to attract more customers." Pierre nodded. "Did you count already?"

"I did," I gave him a list and he looked it over.

"Could I get store credit on part of it?" I pondered. "So I don't have to carry all that money on me?"

"Oh absolutely!" He agreed instantly. "We always offer store credit to the local farmers. You actually get five percent more if you do that."

"Sign me up!" I cheered. We set it up and made myself an account. "Is Abigail home?"

"She is. She's grounded."

"Grounded?" I suddenly had a bad feeling. "May I ask why?"

"She went out and joined the adventurer's guild! After My wife and I specifically told her not to! Can you believe that!?"

I looked at his angry face and weighed my options. I could try to lie and stay on his good side or I could defend Abigail an possibly lose my best and almost only customer. Deciding to stand by my friend, I chose my words carefully. "Oh, I knew!"

"You did!?" He looked shocked.

"She saved my life in the mines. I was in there trying to get some iron to make myself some farming tools." He nodded for me to go on. "She was there, saved me from a king slime! I don't know what would have happened to me if she wasn't with me at the time!" I put a hand over my chest. "I wouldn't be here if not for her… I owe her _everything_ for protecting me!" I think I might have laid it on a little thick, but Pierre was shaken enough to not protest.

"I… I see… She did, did she?"

I nodded and decided to push my luck a little more. "I may not have the right to say this, but… I don't feel safe not having her be in the guild… She's like my guardian… and without her I couldn't keep bringing you fresh produce like this so often."

"Oh… I see… Yes, I suppose you're right, but… My daughter-"

"Is very brave and strong." My words made him look down.

"She is… But she's a _girl_! She needs to-" He looked at me and I cocked my head to the side, indicating that I was a girl as well. "To find what makes her happy, I guess…"

"I think so," I took the slip of paper from him that had my new balance on it and smiled. "Thank you Pierre, and when you see Abigail, thank her again for me?"

"I will… I will, Kim."

Walking outside, I took out my cell phone and tapped on it, finding her name right near the top. Opening up the messaging, I sent her my first text. ' _you owe me one'_ and added a little heart at the end. When I was finished undoing the ties on my horse's reigns I felt a buzz in my pocket. Checking it, I grinned. ' _What do you mean?_ ' with a frowny face. ' _You'll see_ ' and a smiley face.

I was already back home before I got another text back. Abigail sent me a picture of herself in front of the guild giving a peace sign. It was a rather nice image and I couldn't help but set it as my wallpaper. The Junimo near my house greeted me happily when I got back. They did a little dance like usual, which I now dubbed the 'back home from work' dance. "Hey little guys," I told them. "What sounds good for dinner?" I knew they didn't like my cooked food, but it just felt natural to talk to them now.

I looked at the calendar by my refrigerator before cooking and pondered on it a moment. I had written down many things on it, sort of like a little diary. Picking up the pen hanging near it, I wrote down today's message. "Saved Abigail's butt and made money." Above this date, last week, I saw another note: "Leah asked me to pose." I sighed out at it.

I was over the initial shyness of the request, but I was still self conscious about it. Leaning onto the counter top, I hummed. "What do you guys think?" I asked a teal Junimo who was next to me. He raised up one hand at me and made a supportive sound. "Go for it?" He nodded.

"I mean, it's not like it's… anything weird, right?" I stood up and walked around, my friends following. "But she did call it a date earlier… so does that mean she wants to start dating?" I turned and paced the other direction. "If so, then getting undressed in front of her…" I tried to fight off the blush. "And then there's Abigail, who is also super cute and strong… would she get upset if I did this?" I turned again. "Does Abigail even like girls? Am I over thinking this?"

I turned and paced the other way yet again, now having a conga line of Junimo following me. "I'm over thinking this… Leah just wants to paint someone, and I happened to be there and support her. So it's totally ok. It's just fine." I nodded to myself several times. "It's fine… I just… oh my, what am I going to _wear_!? I can't go over there in these!" I looked down and undid my overalls to see white panties with cow faces over them with the word "Moo!" written randomly. "I'll have to buy something…" I blushed harder. "I don't know how to buy lingerie! Who _wears_ lingerie!?" I face palmed and sat down in front of my laptop. "Calm down, Kim, calm down… you're just over reacting because you've been single for several years…It's fine… just… take a peek."

Turning on my Laptop, I opened up a browser and typed in a popular lingerie address. Images came up on my screen and instantly I pictured myself in them laying on a bed in front of Leah. Quickly, I closed the laptop and leaned back in the chair, literally feeling the heat on my face. "I'm doomed…"


	8. Chapter 8

I stood in front of the green vegetation before me and looked at it with both anxiety and hopefulness. My money from the fruit trees was all but gone, and the last few days I had survived off fish and the random foraging . A few meals were redeemed with free coupons from Gus, and now I was sure it was time to make my first harvest. A farmer's market was being held in town tomorrow and I desperately wanted to sell something there. Reaching down, I gripped the leaves and steadied my grip before pulling up sharply.

 **Stardust VIII**

 **By: Satashi**

A loud cheer came as I saw a multitude of potatoes erupt from the ground. They were _huge_ compared to the ones I had back home, and had a hefty weight about them that I knew meant Good Eats. Grabbing my wheel barrel, I started to harvest greedily. My plots had treated me well, and I was delighted to finally see the rewards of my hard work. Moving them to the area near my house, I placed them in a wire mesh basket and sprayed them with a water hose. The simple rig was Maru's idea, and I was more than happy to let her set it up for me. It rotated slowly, allowing me to rinse the dirt off them completely before transferring to a rack to dry.

The next few hours was a repeat of this. Uprooting or cutting plants, rinsing them off, letting them dry, and moving to baskets. Although I was sure I wouldn't need to do my entire farm all for this day, I still made sure the truck that Robin was letting me borrow was full. Everything else could be sold to the locals later as they needed it. For now, though, I was pleasantly pleased at the haul. As I made my way back inside, I called out to my Junimo friends and told them to take whatever they wanted and pointed to a separate basket I had just for them.

I really wanted a shower and I started undoing my overalls when a package caught my eye. I picked it up off my dresser and looked in it yet again. I felt the familiar warmth on my cheeks grow and I bit my lip. ' _Maybe soon, Leah._ ' My thoughts snapped out of it when I heard a knock at my door. "Coming!" I called out, trotting back to the living room.

Abigail was there waiting for me. I let her in and watched her look around a little bit. "I've never actually been in here," she mused. "It's rather nice!"

"Thanks!" I would take that. Granted, the place still wasn't really up to standard conditions just yet. I was working hard on it, trying to do at least one little thing a day to try and make it more… modern I guess was the right word for it. "It's a real pain working on it so much. I guess you saw it from the outside enough?"

"Oh it was a wreck," she agreed. "Anyway, I came for more than just telling you to clean up." Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a folded piece of paper. "Here, this is a layout of everyone who will have stalls open and where they will be. You're right in front of our shop. There will be a stand for you and you can have your barrels and stuff on the ground as well.

"Oh, that's good." I looked it over. "Thank you, this really helps." Glancing over, I noticed Abigail sniffing. "What is it?" She hummed and leaned closer to me, her nose almost touching my neck. I heard her sniff a few times. "Abigail?"

"You smell really good." She realized. "Like grass and garlic and dirt and sweat."

"That's… a good thing?" I pondered aloud.

"Yeah, it's really sexy when someone works and smells like that." She waved her hands. "Not that I'm saying you're sexy or anything, but you know, you certainly _smell_ sexy and that's a turn on. I mean, not a turn on like… Oh god, I screwed that up." She put her face onto her palm. "I'll just die now, thank you."

I grinned at her. "Thank you. I'll take that as a compliment. Sadly for you, though, I was about to take a shower."

"Aww," She pouted at me and I started to feel like it was a testing flirt. "Okay then, I'll just go."

"You can stay if you want, I won't be long." I offered.

The purple haired girl blushed lightly. "No, I think I better go." She moved to head toward the door, but stopped next to me. I was going to ask, but she leaned close again, her nose just behind my ear. I heard her take along intake of air before pulling away. "Yum." She mused before walking out the door, her hips actually swaying a little as she did so.

I looked to the side where a yellow Junimo was looking at me. "That was definitely flirting." It nodded and held up one arm. " _Now_ what do I do!?"

* * *

The town was bustling with activity when I arrived. People were everywhere, ranging from what looked like local market representatives to just the average person. I had come extra early just in case, and I was glad I had. Carefully I put the truck in a parking space for Pierre's store labeled customer's only. Fortunately I had special permission from him, and was able to set up my wares fairly easily. No sooner than I had my sign up than a few people come to sample my strawberries. They instantly bought some and must have spread the word because soon after, a multitude of people began to swarm me.

The morning went so well I had debating driving back home to get some more, but knew it would be pointless. I couldn't harvest and clean enough while still making it back in time to make it worth closing down my shop for. Instead, I called out for people to come try some of my free samples. After a quarter of my goods were gone, I finally saw Leah in the crowd. It was officially time to open and she jogged over to me, holding something with both hands. "Good morning!" She greet cheerfully. "Uhm, I made you something." She shyly held up a wooden sign and turned it so I could see. My farm's name was carved into it with fancy olden letters. Within the large letters were all sorts of berries and plants, with singing birds and rabbits scattered around as well. There was even a Junimo on it as well! I wasn't sure if she could see them, but I had found out that they were rumored to be around here and had pictures of them in books.

"It looks… Wow…" I couldn't really believe the detail she had put into it. "It's phenomenal!" I had a white poster board in front of my shop that had 'Fresh Produce!' written on it with a marker. "How long did this take!?"

"I don't time my projects," she answered simply. "I measure them in feelings. This one was really high on the list!"

"…Thank you!" I put it up in front of my stand and made extra sure it couldn't fall over. "You're so talented… you should have brought some of your things to sell."

"Well… I did." She revealed a bag that held a small amount of carved figurines. "But I'm a little too shy to try and sell them… I tried! I really did! I just couldn't find my voice to call anyone over…"

"That's going to change." I took the bag from her and started setting them on a cleared out section on my stand. "You are officially selling here now!"

"But, I don't know if I could…"

Leah's voice was cut off by a young boy's. "Look Mama! A kitty!" He ran up and picked up one of the cat statues Leah had done. "Meow!"

An older woman came up and placed her hand on the boy's head. "How much for the cat statue?"

My friend went stiff as a board, eyes wide. "H-hi! Th-that's… That one…On bottom.. price tag!"

I placed both hands on her shoulders and could feel her shaking. "The price is on the bottom ma'am, they're each individually marked. If you buy one, you get a free small container of blueberries."

"Well then!" The woman looked pleased at that. "It is a little pricey, but the craftsmanship is amazing… I have a friend that would _love_ one of these. Could you do a discount on two?" The red headed girl beside me nodded dumbly. When the lady picked up an owl statue, I gave Leah's shoulders a squeeze, making her snap into reality.

"That one," she began. "I am rather proud of the feathers on it. I used an old folklore owl as inspiration. It's supposed to bring good dreams."

"That's wonderful!" She nodded in appreciation of it. "And yes, the feathers almost look real. This is done by hand?" She got a fevered nod. "I'll take both."

Pride and accomplishment couldn't even describe the emotions I saw on the girl's face. She broke out into the largest smile I had ever seen and quickly calculated up a discount and accepted the money. She held the gold in her hands and shook with excitement this time. Before I could even say anything she called out to everyone around. "Hand carved statues and figurines here! Each one lovingly made with wood from Stardew!"

"Free blueberries with every purchase!" I added in, calling out loudly. "Fresh produce picked just yesterday!"

Our shameless calls attracted more people to the stand, and before long I could barely keep up with Leah, who was not only selling but giving out her phone number and Etsy name for people to find her later. My blueberries were starting to go fast, but luckily for me at least, she had only brought a dozen or so. It only took a few hours, but we both sold out. The stand was empty and just in time too, as people were starting to pack up. I thought it would last all day, but seems like Farmer's Markets were just a morning thing.

"That went so much better than I thought." Leah looked into her purse to see all the coins and bills. "I've made more today than… last month as a whole… maybe more!"

"And I made enough to reseed and work new sections on my farm… Not to mention eat. I've lost three pounds the past little bit."

"Don't you _dare_ go without eating something!" Leah scolded me. "We met over food, the least I can do is share some!"

"We met with you sharing some," I agreed. "And I kept your basket for almost a week before returning it."

"I had another," she grinned while pulling her braid over her should to stroke it. It was a habit I noticed she had whenever she was is a good mood. I was going to make a comment on it but Sam was jogging over to us and was trying to get my attention. "Hey Sam, you missed all the good stuff!" I opened a water bottle and took a long drink from it to quench my throat from all the yelling earlier.

"I can always get some from Pierre's place! Say, Kim, are you a lesbian?"

I immediately spit the water out, mostly over his face. "Wha-what!?"

"Sam, that's a really rude thing to just ask," Leah protested as the man made an effort to clean himself off. "That's like if I came up to you and asked if you liked guys out of the blue."

"That's fine," Sam insisted. "So yay or nay?"

"No, I'm not a lesbian." I insisted. "I'm pansexual."

The look of confusion on his face spoke well before his mouth could. "Does that mean you like… have sex with pans and stuff?"

"Oh for the love of…" Leah looked exasperated.

"It's okay, I'm used to it." I tried to think of the best way to describe it. "I like males, females, and anything in between. If you're about to ask something specific, the answer is yes, I do."

Sam nodded and smiled. "Awesome, thanks, that's just what I needed to know." Turning around, he cupped his hands over his mouth and yelled out over to where I saw Sebastian and Abigail standing. "Hey Abigail! She does like chicks!" I saw the girl freeze and then attempt to hide behind Sebastian, who was calmly shaking his head while smoking. "I wonder why she was too embarrassed to ask herself."

"Whelp…" I sighed. "Looks like someone just got pulled out of the closet in a most violent tug."

"Sam, you're an idiot." Leah groaned out. "A clueless, but loveable, idiot."

I saw Pierre and Caroline walking over to the two and began going over as well, followed by my friends. When I arrived, I could already tell what was going on just by their expressions. "Abby, what's going on? Why did you want to know if someone liked girls? The whole town could hear it."

I was fortunate enough to not be singled out, but Pierre was a little less tactful. "Abigail, you don't… like other girls do you?" He asked, uncertain.

Sam's face lit up in realization at that moment. "Uh oh…"

"I… I mean, no… maybe… I-I don't know!"

"It's a simple question, Abigail." Caroline encouraged. "Just say no?"

"I… I might!" She looked panicked now.

Before I could even do anything, Leah was in front of me. She walked over to Abigail and stood next to her. "Abigail, look at me." She asked softly, getting the attention desired. "It's okay if you do or don't, but if you do, and you feel like you would like to be honest with yourself, then we're all here to listen to you. If you don't, then just say so and we'll leave it at that, okay?"

The soft encouraging tone from someone who was already open about her feelings made Abigail ease up noticeably. She looked at her friends first, then to her parents, and then over to me. Nodding, I gave my encouragement with a smile. Finally she took a long deep breath. "I... I'm bi."

Sebastian put his hand on her shoulder and grinned at her. Sam simply shrugged and gave a thumbs up, while Leah gave a little hop and clap. Pierre's voice came next, sounding more dejected than anything else. "First the strange clothes, then the purple hair, now this… Where did we go wrong?"

"Whoa, hey!" I protested at once, walking forward before anyone else could do anything. "You didn't _go wrong_ anywhere! This is Abigail, this is your daughter, this is the same girl you raised from a baby. Her feelings and actions may not be what you had envisioned or even hoped for, but this is still your little girl here!"

Caroline looked over at us. "Yes, but we just wanted what was best for her, not this… alternative lifestyle she keeps choosing.

"Mom! It's not an alternative lifestyle, it's who I am!" Her voice cracked and I could tell she was on the edge of breaking down. "This is me! I'm an adventurer! I have purple hair! I like the color black! I like…" Her breathing broke and she choked a moment, crying now. "I'm bi, mom. This is what is the _best_ for me! This is what I _want_! You two have always… suffocated me with what you think is the best that you've never looked at things… things from my point of view! You just… just…" She was shaking now and I went to hug her but Leah grabbed my hand and held me back before I could move."You just _tolerated_ it! You never saw that I was _happy_ like this!"

Pierre looked down, not saying anything for a moment. It was deathly quiet in our little area, broken only by the sounds of Abigail panting and a soft sob between every few breaths. The girl wiped her eyes with both hands, her mascara smearing across her nose from the motions. "Is this _really_ what makes you happy, Abigail?" He asked his daughter finally.

" _Yes_ , Dad!" Her voice was high pitched.

"Then… Then I guess I have to accept that." He took a long breath. "Maybe I have been pushing my ideas on you a little too hard…"

Caroline simply nodded at that. "I can't say I understand, but… Maybe you can explain it to us and help us see it the way you do… To see what makes you happy, Abby."

My friend nodded and walked forward, getting hugs from both of them. "Thank you!" She breathed out, eyes tightly closed. I looked over at everyone to see their reactions as well. Sebastian looked awkward to say the least, but I expected that from him. He was too shy to really express much. Sam was almost in tears as well, nodding like a proud parent at a child learning to walk. Leah was simply smiling at the outcome, pleased with how everything went.

Noticing my look, she leaned closer to whisper in my ear. "When I came out, I really needed to have a little break down, or I might not have gone through with it." she explained softly to me. "I've felt Abigail needed this as well for a while now." I bit my lip and nodded, understanding.

When the family separated, Abigail took a deep breath and fanned herself. She turned to look at me and then took a few steps to stand in front of me. "Can I have a hug?" She asked meekly. I quickly gave it to her, squeezing the girl tight.

"Good job," I whispered to her.

"Killing a king slime was easier," she admitted back to me. When I moved to let her go, she gripped me a little tighter, extending the hug. I heard her sniff, but due to her crying spell it was more of a suppressed snort. "I can't smell you," she complained sadly.

"You can sniff my hair later," I promised her. "I'll even rub garlic in it for you." The tease seemed to lighten her mood a little.

"I'll hold you to that." She slowly let me go and looked me in the eyes. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She took a few steps back.

"Well! That's a thing." She addressed everyone, breaking the tension. "I need some makeup remover! I probably look like a raccoon." There was a collective laugh at that.

"So!" Sam clapped his hands. "How about a coming out party? We can get pizza!"

Sebastian rolled his eyes. "You _always_ want pizza."

"I could go for food," I admitted.

"Pizza it is," Abigail agreed. "To the saloon!" She looked over at her parents. "I'll be back sometime… you both go make use of the extra customers." They nodded and gave one more hug before heading off on their own. "Leah, please tell me you have something in that bag of yours."

"I do. Let's get you cleaned up and ready for a celebration." Leah took her hand and pulled her ahead to the Saloon in front of us.

"Well," Sebastian exhaled his cigarette smoke. "I kind of was taken by surprise."

"Me too, wow!" Sam agreed. "Do you think Abigail and Leah are…?"

"No," I snorted. "Absolutely not."

"Maybe Haley?" He asked again as we started going to the Saloon as well.

Sebastian flicked his cigarette into a trash can. "Sam, you're so blind sometimes."

"I mean who else? Well there's Kim, but she's more like one of the guys."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" I exclaimed.

"Well… you know…" Sam shrugged. "You're tough and awesome, and you can skateboard, and just generally not lady like at all." I groaned, going on ahead and leaving them behind. "Hey, what's gotten into her? Those are all _really_ attractive things!"

Once inside, I gave Gus a little wave and pointed back over towards the arcade room. He nodded at me and I walked over to our usual hang out spot. Since I was the first, I went over to the Prairie King arcade and tossed in a gold piece. The game started up and I took control of the little cowboy to lead him once again to his certain death over the course of a few minutes. I was just out of level two and upgrading my gun when I heard the now familiar cracking of a cue ball against the billiards. Sebastian was more than a little skilled at the game, often pulling off trick shots that I had previously only seen on YouTube videos.

My character died and I tried to re-focus on the game at hand. As I did so, Gus came over to us all and started taking orders. When he got to me, I told him I was really craving a hamburger with fries. I also informed him I was going to buy whatever Abigail wanted, but was beaten out by Leah, who was already paying for it. "That's fine, by all means take her money over mine!" He got a good laugh and I called out for extra fries when he made his way back to start on our meals. This, of course, distracted me enough to bite the dust again. It was really not my gaming day.

My last death came soon and I sighed. I entered my initials and succeeded in my current week long activity of knocking all of Abigail's high scores off the machine. Not that this was a hard feat, mind you. She had presently never managed to beat the first boss of the game. If not for Gus resetting the scores every week during his normal cleaning of the machines, the poor thing might never get to enter her name in at all. As I left the arcade cabinet, I sat next to Abigail and Leah on the little love seat, making them scrunch up together to allow me room. "I cleared your scores off the machine again," I greeted Abigail, who now no longer looked like a woodland animal.

"Kim you're _so_ mean." She protested, giving a cute pout. "You know how hard I worked to get those names up there?"

Sebastian answered for me while waiting for Sam to make up his mind on his current shot. "Almost as much work as she put in to top them?" His voice was light and teasing. Before she could answer, the male instinctively grabbed a striped ball as it flew off the table and towards us. "That's a foul, Sam." He rolled it back onto the table without looking.

"Drinks!" Emily called out to us as she entered the arcade area. We all got our beverages in turn and I held up mine.

"A toast," I declared. "To Abigail being awesome."

"Cheers!" The group rang out, all lifting their glasses and making a show of clinking them all together.

"You guys are the best." Abigail replied. "Except for Kim, who beat my scores. Again."

"You know you like me." I nudged her. "Maybe one day you'll beat the boss."

Sam tried to sink another ball, but failed. "When I beat Sebastian at pool maybe…"

"Oh that does it!" Abigail stood up and marched over to the arcade, putting her drink on the little table next to it. Leah reached over and poked me and then nodded over to the arcade. Taking the hint, I hopped up as well. By the time I made it, Abigail had already put in a coin. I slid one in as well and hit the player two button, making it a combo game. "You playing too?" She asked the obvious.

"We've never played together before." I mused, watching the screen.

"Here we go!" Abigail focused on her game, moving around a little carelessly. I made it a point to protect her more than myself, which lead me to almost dying several times over. I kept on, to the point where Abigail took notice. "Are you protecting me?" She asked softly.

"You're the one who protects me in real life," I answered back so only she could hear. "In this game, I can protect you instead." I shot a few more monsters trying to get her and dodged out of the way of a spike, using it to block off a horde that had been building up. "Twin daggers, though? No more sword? I never got to ask."

"They said I was too clumsy for a sword," Abigail almost died while talking. "So they suggested something that can be more…quick to recover."

"It fits you." I complimented her. This caused her to lose focus and die, however. "Hey, keep your eyes peeled there, partner." I picked up a star and started clearing the screen.

We made it to the first boss and hid behind the wooden fences as the now two cowboys filled the screen with bullets. I waited for an opening and Abigail followed suit. After a few rounds of not moving, I finally shifted to the side and shot diagonal at one of them, landing several bullets. "This feels like cheating," She mused.

"They give you cover for a reason," I countered. "You have to really think to survive boss runs." I repeated the same move twice more before my side was taken out. "Don't get reckless now," I warned as she died trying to sneak in a few more bullets. "Just wait and watch." She did as I requested and the boss exploded on the screen. Some forest animals came down to escort us off to the next level and she pumped her fist up in the air.

"Yeah! Take that, Game!" I giggled at her outburst and kept playing. She quickly grabbed the controls again and breathed out in excitement. "New enemies! They take two hits to kill!?"

"Should have upgraded your gun." I moved around her, shooting things quickly. The extra enemies from a second player started adding up and I could tell the end was near. We were getting cornered and just before we were going to be over ran, I saw a clear screen bomb. I just managed to grab it and free us before our last lives were claimed.

"You can really work a joystick," she teased me.

"I've been told that a time or two." I replied airily, getting a quick look to which I grinned at.

"If you ever want to work a joystick on me, just say the word." She whispered a little huskily so only I could hear. The flirt made me falter and die. "My chance!" She cried out, spamming her attack button and killing several more monsters before she died as well. The scores came up where we could enter our initials in, hers slightly higher than mine. "I'm above you!"

"You… you cheated!" I denied her. "You can't do that!"

"Do what?" A new voice came up. Sam was looked at us while Sebastian took his turn.

"Do… Do nothing…" I finished lamely. Glancing over at Abigail, she wagged her eyebrows at me and pointed back at the screen. Giving up, I walked back over to the love seat and flopped down onto it. Leah looked over at me with a curious face. "I let her win," I attempted, getting a small shaking of a head. "Okay, fine… I lost… but it was a _team_ game, so technically-" She shook her head again and I gave up. "Fine, fine… she beat my score…"

Fortunately for me, our food came then. We gathered at a table and all recollected our drinks for refills. "Another toast?" Sam asked curiously. "It seems to be the day for it."

"To honesty," Abigail raised her glass and looked at me.

"To friendship," I added in and looked at Sam.

"To fun."

"To acceptance," Sebastian added.

"To friendly rivalries and not letting them get in the way of true friendship." Leah finished while looking at Abigail. The two tapped their glasses first, as if it were just for them at that moment. The rest of us joined in and drank together. I couldn't help but look over at the two friends who were laughing about something before both of them looked my way at the same time. I awkwardly held up a hand in a curious wave, which only made them laugh harder.

It was by no means late when we left the Saloon, but we were all tired from the good times and I was especially wrecked from selling this morning as well. We all waved our goodbyes and I began walking with Abigail back to the store to pick up Robin's truck to return. She walked a little closer to me than normal, so our shoulders were bumping into each other's. I could really tell she was being extra playful with me today, and I really didn't mind it. The back of my mind, though, kept thinking it was unfair to Leah the same way I thought posing for her was unfair to Abigail. I knew I really had a problem, and it was starting to really get to me. I was having a hard time truly having fun with either of them without feeling like I was some sort of… something... that was bad.

"You're quiet," she finally told me when we got close to her house. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I lied softly.

"No, really, what is it?" She stopped and grabbed my hand. "Was it… what I said earlier? Did I make you uncomfortable?"

"What? No, no! That's not it." I took a breath and tried to think of a way out of this. I looked at her and her eyes were truly concerned for me. I felt even worse and let my shoulders sag down a little. "I don't want to talk about it here."

"Come up to my room with me?"

"I… No, that's not fair to your parents. I'm sure you will have to do a lot of explaining to them. Don't worry, we all go through it."

"Then…" We stopped in front of Robin's truck. "Let me ride with you. You're taking this back right?"

"I am." With that, Abigail walked around and got in the passenger seat, not giving me a chance to deny her. I felt a little happy, though, and got in as well. I drove a little slower than normal, trying to weigh my words. "You see…" I tried before struggling to find the words. "If I say ' I have a friend that' you would know it was me, right?"

"Of course."

"I… really feel conflicted. I have strong feelings for…" I tried to really find the words.

"For Leah and me." Abigail finished for me. "We know."

I stayed silent for a moment before sighing. "Cat's out of the bag then. Yes, I do."

"It's okay, we are both ok with it, and with waiting." She reached over and took my free hand. "We talked about it in the bathroom today while she was fixing my makeup. We both like you… a lot actually. But we both agreed that no matter what happens, we'll still be friends and support each other after… if you pick one of us, of course…"

"I really appreciate that, more than I can really say… but also… I feel like… like I can't really have fun with one of you without feeling like I'm being rude to the other… It's gotten to the point where I second guess just being alone with one of you… What would Leah think if she saw us now… What would you think if I went to her house… It's really tearing me apart…"

"You're a really nice person." She gave my hand a squeeze. "But at the same time, you thinking like that isn't really fair to us either. I want to know that, if you really do like me, that you would be yourself with me. I don't want to win over a person that isn't fully there. I want the whole package. I mean, hell, I just told my parents I was bi just so I could try to be with you… Can't you do the same for us?"

"You really mean that?"

"Mmhmm, and I promise Leah does too. She would be mad if she found out you were holding back for my sake. You would get that pouty face and mean look. I've seen it before." I grinned at that, also knowing it. "So for real, it's ok. We're in an awkward spot, and just have to play it out. You're not a cheater, you're not a bad person, and you're definitely not going to hurt us by being yourself."

"You're going to make me cry," I told her, taking my hand back to wipe my eyes. "I'm driving, don't do that!" She laughed at me softly. When we got to Robin's house, I took a moment to compose myself before getting out. "Okay… Okay, I'm good."

"Really?"

"Yeah… Yeah, I'm good. That took so much off me. I have been having trouble sleeping and making decisions and… I'm good."

"Okay then…" She scooted close to me and leaned forward, giving me a hug and sniffing my hair again. "You smell good."

"Still?" I teased.

"I never know how you'll smell. Sometimes like strawberries, sometimes like garlic, sometimes like dirt and grass… It's always a thrill."

"And now?" I pondered.

"You smell…" she took a long intake that gave me goose bumps. "Like victory." She gave my cheek a kiss and leaned back. "Because I'm going to win your heart." She gave me a peace sign and giggled. I blushed hard and was saved from having to answer when Robin came out to greet us. "I'm going to the guild before going home." She told me while waving to the carpenter. I nodded at her and gave her a wave as well before going to return the truck keys and loading my horse up with the empty baskets. Once done, I saddled up and began the trek home.


	9. Chapter 9

I really felt in a good mood when I awoke this morning. I slept really well and had decided to give myself the day off in celebration of my first real harvest. I wasn't in an particular mood to do anything specific, but lounging around all day in my underwear wasn't really on the top of my priority list. That thought made me pause and look over at my bedroom dresser. The package was still there, waiting for me. As I approached it, I felt a little more at ease this time. ' _Maybe today?_ ' I asked myself, feeling a little excited rather than nervous. ' _I've made her wait about a month now…_ ' I pulled the lingerie from the torn open plastic bag and let it fall onto the dresser top. Looking at it for a moment, a single thought went through my mind: ' _How do I even put this on!?_ '

 **Stardust IX**

 **By: Satashi**

Once I was fully dressed for the day, I went outside and saddled up my horse to make the trip to Leah's house. Granted, it wasn't too terribly far of a walk, but it was getting warm and I had put on some makeup and did my hair already. I didn't want it to be ruined by the time I arrived. That, and I was quickly discovering that lingerie was meant to be taken off, not to wear, as the lace was rubbing me in all the wrong spots. Grabbing the saddle horn, I jumped up and slung my leg over the horse, only to stand up and wince. "Ah! Wedgie… wedgie!"

Leah's house came into view not too long after I started galloping down the path, and I just realized that I didn't know if she would be home or not today. Fortunately for me, I saw her in the window as I dismounted and tied my horse off to a tree nearby. Getting to the door, I felt the nervousness come back full force. I tried to swallow it down and steadied myself before knocking. "Come in!" Leah's voice sang out. Upon entering her eyes lit up. "Kim! Hi! Welcome, what brings you by?"

"Oh, nothing really," I managed out, putting my hands in my pockets. "Just, you know, relaxing after such a nice day yesterday."

"It was wonderful wasn't it?" She agreed readily. "I had one person even message me on Etsy last night! The wanted to buy something and wanted to see if I could get it to the mailbox in time for it to arrive before a birthday. I felt so proud!"

"That's wonderful!" I beamed at her. "Look at you, already selling stuff! You just needed a little push is all."

"I did!" Leah nodded. "Today I'm going to paint all day long. I just have this burning desire inside! My art juices are really flowing!"

"That's good!" I rocked on my heels. "So, uhm, since you're going to be painting today, I thought I'd ask you something?"

"Hm? A request?" She looked delighted at the idea.

"Y-yeah… kind of…" I coughed lightly. "Uhm…I thought, maybe… I could… you know… maybe… uhm… undress and… lay on your bed?"

It took her a few full seconds to catch my meaning. "Oh! Oh yes! I'd love to!" She began scrambling to put her art supplies in order. "Oh, my bed is a mess! Ah, I should have cleaned!" The braided girl almost tripped over her own discarded boots. "I'm so sorry, I had this planned out all nice and organized and perfect and just look at me!"

"It's fine!" It was actually making me feel a little easier about this.

"Okay…" She tried her best to arrange the comforter on her bed correctly. "It's really warm today, a long sleeved shirt isn't the best idea, you know."

"I know, I needed it"

"Whatever for?" She motioned me to come over to her so I did.

"Just… because…" I looked down shyly.

"Okay… uhm…" She threw her arms out happily. "Here we are!"

A giggle. "Here we are." There was a small silence between us.

"Should I… turn around?"

"I don't think that would really help, seeing as how you're going to be painting me." We both chuckled at that. "I'm just shy…"

Leah looked at me for a good moment before smiling softly. "Do you want help?"

"…Yeah." She stepped forward and ran her fingers along the collar to my shirt, tracing the hems until they reached the first button.

"Are you sure you're okay with me seeing you?" She asked me gently. "You can still say no." I shook my head and met her eyes. Her fingers undid the button and slid down a little to do the second, and then the third. "Oh!" She realized, the corners of her lips turning up. "Emerald green." Her tone held a certain fondness to it. "It looks wonderful." I nodded my thanks, as I was too nervous to speak properly. As she continued, I watched her face turn from happy to a little confused, to embarrassed. "Is… Is that a garter belt?" She breathed out when my hips were revealed. "And straps… Did you… did you buy this just for me?"

"D-Don't make me answer that!" I pleaded, face burning. She didn't reply, but instead focused on slowly undoing the last button. My shirt slowly fell backwards a little and I finally removed my hands from my pockets. The clothing hit the floor and revealed the sheer, lace covered gloves decorating my arms up to my biceps. They opened at my wrist, save for a little piece that went down my hand and looped around my middle finger to keep them in place. Shyly, I looked away.

"Challenge accepted," Leah breathed out. Her hand reached out to touch me, but stopped just short of making contact. "May I?" She whispered softly. I gave a short nod and felt my breath catch when her palm touched my stomach. Her hands were a little rough, probably from all of her carving and working, but were very gentle on me. She traced the lines of my ribs with both hands, gliding over my sides and to my hips. I felt her slip one finger under my garter and slide it along my sides to straighten a segment that had folded under itself. "You look…" She exhaled happily in a small, content laugh. "…Amazing. Just amazing."

"Thank you…" I whispered back to her. She stepped a little closer and I could almost feel my heart pounding in my chest. Her eyes were everywhere, drinking me in without restraint. Her fingers moved along my collar bone, my neck, and my shoulders, trailing down my sides and back to my hips. I had never felt more insecure about myself than at that moment, but at the same time felt a little proud that I could make someone look that intensely at me as well.

Finally her hands went to the front of my jeans. They paused there and she looked at me once again, silently asking permission one more time. I breathed out a silent yes, and she caught it. Her slender fingers popped the button clasp and her hands went together, slowly unzipping them down as my heart threatened to beat right out of my throat. We locked eyes again and I felt lost in them, dizzy with emotion and shyness. Her left hand touched my cheek as her right moved over my hip to help my jeans go down- and then her phone rang.

We both jumped away from each other and the world came into focus again for me. Panting, I held a hand to my chest and wondered if I had stopped breathing during all of that. "V-voice mail will get it!" Leah insisted, face completely red.

"Right," I agreed, fanning myself with one hand. "W-wow!"

"Y-yeah…" Leah finally gave a little laugh, which I joined in on. "Phew… sorry, I got… a little carried away there."

"N-no, it's fine…" We looked at each other and I took the first step forward back to her. She came back as well just as her cell stopped ringing and her voicemail message played. A few seconds later a male's voice came up, greeting Leah with a rather lewd pet name and asking her to pick up the phone. All at once the mood was shattered. Her eyes narrowed and she gave a low curse under her breath.

"Now, of all times…" The voice on the phone told her to pick up again before saying something about coming in person if she didn't answer. Growling, Leah moved to her phone and tapped on it. "Kel, I told you to stop calling me." She greeted the person hotly. I suddenly felt very exposed without her nearby so I decided to sit on her bed and wrap her blankets around myself. "I don't care if that was rude," Leah continued. "After the way you left last time, you're lucky I didn't flat out block your number." She listened for a little bit. "No, it wasn't magical. I still don't care about coming back to the city!"

Leah paced, trying not to look at me. "Kel, I-" a small silence. "Congratulations on the promotion. Now you can get that place you always wanted….No… No, Kel, I don't want to… My art isn't something that needs to be 'taken care of' by someone else!" She almost yelled the last part. "You never showed any interest in my art before; you always complained about how it would never pay the bills and only took money!" She finally looked at me and gave an apologetic look, which I waved off in understanding. "Kel!" She snapped instantly. "I don't need your money! I'm just fine here…! No…" She turned away from me. "I was _lonely_ , Kel…You brought me wine!" She stayed there, looking at the wall for a moment more. "No! And you're not coming here! That was a mistake…Kel… No, I have a guest over. A very important guest…No! Don't call me later, don't come over, don't look at my Etsy post, and don't email me!" She moved her phone from her ear and tapped it with her thumb before tossing it lightly onto the table.

"Stalker?" I ventured a guess.

"Worse, ex boyfriend." She came over to me and sat down on the bed as well. "I guess you deserve an explanation after all of that…"

"You don't have to."

"I know, but I would feel bad just pretending it never happened after yelling like that…" She took a deep breath. "Where to even begin…"

"At the beginning?" I offered lamely.

Leaning forward a little, she brought her legs up to cross on the bed."That was Kel, my ex boyfriend like I said… we used to have an apartment together a while back. We hardly had the money to get by, and my art supplies were a steady drain on our already limited budget. He was… really vocal about me going to school and learning to do something…real."

"What a jerk. No offence."

"None taken." She tossed her braid over her shoulder when it fell down. "He was…very manipulative. I didn't see it too much at the time, but he always twisted things… Made me feel like it was my fault we were having troubles. He never showed any support to me…" Looking up at the ceiling, she pressed on. "I really loved him back then, and I kept thinking that if maybe I got good enough to make him see that we could make it on my artwork then everything would be better. It just got worse from there, though."

I spoke up when she hesitated. "That bad?"

"It really started to feel like I was a possession after a while. I asked him several times to pose for me, to offer advice from an outside point of view on what I was working on...to… heck, even to just go to the store to get me some paint when I was really feeling the fire of inspiration. He never did any of it… But when he needed something…" She made a face. "He never hesitated to come onto me, even when I was working… made me wear things for him even when he wouldn't even let me paint a single portrait of him even in his casual clothes…" Her face darkened. "He showed me off to his friends! His _friends_! The people who came over to hang out with us! The people I knew and cooked for!"

"Showed off…?" I hesitated to imply anything, but her furious look told the tale. "… Oh… Wow."

She sighed. "And after a while I just had enough of it. I realized it was going to come down to either my art or him. I chose my art and we parted on really bad terms. Like really, _really_ bad terms."

"But he still calls?"

"Well… It took several months after I left, but he eventually made an effort to contact me. He said he would bring by my art supplies he kept and wanted to see my new place… So I agreed, naturally. He had a lot of important things still… So he came by and…we had some wine… I made mistakes, and he just up and left afterwards, saying something about a work call. Fast forward a few months later, he stops by… I was having a bad day and someone insulted my art online… More wine, more mistakes, and up and leaves. Ever since then, I've made it painfully clear he wasn't welcome to ever set foot in my house again. I don't care what he finds at his home, what he has to say, I don't want any of it. I swear I'll knock his lights out if I ever see his face again…"

"Wow…"

"Yeah… so that's my story." She looked over at me from the side of her eyes. "Leah, the wimpy push over grew a backbone and stood up for herself. I just wish I had done it sooner… and didn't let him think he could still come over and have his way with me whenever he thought it would be fun."

"He got you drunk though? Isn't that like… a class A felony?"

Leah propped her chin up on her palm. "I should have said no to it. Wine and I have… issues."

"Issues?"

"Makes my clothes come off," she revealed, not really ashamed about it. "Just like 'Whoops I had two glasses, I'm feeling hot, might as well strip!' you know?"

I smiled, trying to lighten the mood as well. "You got me to strip without any wine."

"Too bad this had to happen…" Leah apologized. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize. I got to learn something about you. Something important about your past."

"Even if it's about me being stupid?" She pondered.

I shook my head. "I'm hardly the innocent virgin myself. I'm not really proud of all my romps either. But I'm here now, in this town, living this life, and that's what matters. Not some ignorant jerk that thinks with his… other head… or someone who doesn't understand what it really means to be artistic. I mean, here we are, right?"

"Here we are…" Leah confirmed.

"I've never worn anything like this before…" I let the covers fall down. "And you've never painted anyone like this… So let's just go from here."

"You still want to…?"

I almost laughed. "I'm not even sure I can get out of this, let alone put it back on again. This might be your only chance!"

Leah stood up at that. "You're right. This is us now. I have my goals, and I have someone who is really there for me." She looked at me and nodded, starting to go back to her usual self. "Right! This is it!" She walked over in front of me and threw the covers off. "Strip girl!"

"At least buy me some wine first!" I shrieked out as she grabbed the bottom of my jeans and started tugging them off. "Ah be careful, I have on stockings too!"

Leah beamed at the new sight. "You really went all out!"

"W-well, it's important to you…" I looked up at her, smiling. "I feel lots better about this now. How should I lay?"

"Well…" Leah spent the next several minutes painstakingly posing me like a life sized Barbie doll. My hair was moved around, my posture was changed and re-changed, and I felt like I was doing a work out rather than just laying. Finally she seemed satisfied and moved behind her easel. Several brushes were lined up next to her and she began making the first strokes. At first I tried to talk with her while she worked, but even though she answered eagerly enough at first, her replies slowly became less and less detailed. Her eyes were almost glazed over, her hands moving almost what appeared to be on their own. She was lost in a trance of inspiration.

I looked around Leah's room as best I could, trying to not move at all. I inspected her books on the shelf behind her, and read over the names a few times each before moving on to memorizing everything I could. When this became boring, I instead looked up at the clock she had on her desk. I watched the second hand tick by slowly, taking it's time. The faint tick of the clock seemed to fill the room, broken only by the random bird song by the window. When I checked the clock for the up tenth time, I realized I had been laying there for a little over three and a half hours. I was beyond sore at that time, and my body was begging for me to move. "Leah?" I asked her, getting a hum. "Leah." I tried again, this time making her blink and snap out of her daze. "I really don't mind this, but… how much longer do you think you'll need?"

"I…" she looked a little panicked. "I'm sorry! I got lost in time. Uhm.. I … could use another four to five hours?" The look on my face must have given her all my feelings on that at once, as she looked rather sheepish. "Three hours?" I whimpered at her. "I'm so sorry, I've never done one like this before, I was just lost on the detail of your bra… Could you… possibly come back another day? Like tomorrow? For another session?"

"How many sessions would it take? Just one more?"

"I'd like a few more ideally…" Her voice sounded like she knew exactly how much she was asking of me. "But you have work and it'll be hard to do your hair and dress up every day like that and…" Her voice trailed off slightly and her blue eyes went over to her table. "Can I… take pictures of you?"

"Pictures!?" I had to stop myself from jerking. "Oh wow, I don't know, that's really personal." I suddenly felt a little silly saying that, as she was literally making a picture of me right now. "I mean…well…" I felt the familiar tinge on my cheeks. "I guess it's okay… You've been looking at me for hours now."

"Are you sure?" The girl stroked her braid nervously, smearing green paint into it. "I don't want to pressure you into things."

"No pressure… I was just shocked is all..." I tried to encourage her the best I could while staying still. "Go ahead."

"Thank you!" She quickly ran to her camera and started messing with the settings on it. After the first picture, I thought she would quit. Instead, she moved for another angle and took another picture, and then another and another. I lost track of the flashes made and grinned as I noticed that glazed over look in her eyes again. Her 'art mode' as I just decided to call it. It stayed with her until she crouched down right at my midsection to get a close up of the lace design. She almost took a picture before realizing what she was doing. She pulled back and looked at me hesitantly. "M-may I?" She requested, pointing shyly with one finger. I blushed a little more and nodded at her. She then licked her lips and beamed at me. "For art purposes only. I promise."

"I know." I let her take several more snapshots before she stood up and looked at me completely.

"I don't want to let you move," she realized. "Can I just like… display you here always?"

"What? No! I have parsnips that need to grow!" I laughed at her

"But it's _art_!" She insisted. When I shook my head again she pouted at me. "Okay… you can move now."

"Oh thank goodness!" I rolled onto my back and stretched out. "My joints are so stiff!" I felt the bed dip down a little as Leah sat beside me. She was leaning over me lightly, one hand bracing her on my other side. Her long braid had fallen onto my stomach, where it slid off and tickled my side. "Hi." I spoke lamely, feeling shy again at the look I was getting.

"Can I say something?" She pondered.

"You're asking permission an awful lot today."

"You're pretty."

The compliment took me off guard and I couldn't help but pull the covers over my body to try and hide a little bit. She didn't move, and I peeked up over the blankets at her, still trying to cover myself. "…Thank you."

She hesitantly showed me the camera and spoke to me in a really caring voice. "I want to remember this moment… May I take a picture of you? For me?" I felt my heart start to pound again. Her hand moved the blankets to the side to try and find mine, interlacing our fingers.

"Yes," I answered before I could even debate it. "Yes, you may."

* * *

When I found myself working my fields again, one thing was becoming painfully clear: It was getting hotter. My first few weeks of being a farmer was breezy and chilly, then became more and more warm as time went on. I remembered Robin asking me how I was going to survive summer time, and since then several other people had asked me the same thing. I was already sweating heavily and I had only been watering my crops this morning. If I were to start tilling a new area of heaven forbid cutting down some of the smaller trees that took up root here, I was sure I would pass out from dehydration… And it was only the tail end of spring.

The decision to start preparing for summer was made then and there. I sat my watering can down and took off the water holding backpack that Maru had made for me for easy refilling. My horse was nearby and when I gave a sharp whistle to him, he came at my call instantly. I didn't even bother with a saddle today, hopping onto him and leaning forward, hands on his mane. He darted forward when I gave a clicking sound and I began my journey into town. My eastern path was chosen because I knew if I went the southern way I would have stopped by Marnie's or Leah's house to chat. I needed to get things done today, and that would have been a few hours that I didn't really have to spare.

Emily's house came into view not too terribly long later and I hopped off my horse, deciding to let it wander around. "Don't go too far," I asked of it, getting a sound and shaking of his head. I didn't know if it was actually true or not, but I felt as if my horse could understand me. Maybe it was the Junimo's magic, or maybe I was more 'in touch with nature' than I had originally thought. Either way, my lovely horse obeyed me without question most of the time. In return, I tried to spoil him with enough food to make him healthy and tried not to tie him up unless absolutely necessary. Ever since I began doing that, we became good friends instead of just farmer and horse.

A tune was knocked onto the house door and I was bid entrance almost at once. Walking in, I peeled my boots off and sat them by the door as to not track dirt in everywhere. Haley was there watching TV absently. She was gorgeous as normal, wearing a lovely sundress that complimented her figure. "Hi Haley," I greeted her.

"Hey Farm girl," she replied, not really paying me much mind. I haven't really ran across her much since I came into town despite knowing Emily fairly well by now. "Oh hey, what's that in your hair?"

"Hmm?" I pulled the sunflower from ponytail. "Oh, I have them growing on the side of my farm. I thought it looked rather cute so I picked one. Do you like it?" She gave a small nod and a confirming hum. Not really thinking about it, I leaned over and put it into her hair, just above her ear. "There, now you look cute too."

"Hey, thank you!" She sounded rather pleased at the turn of events. "I love sunflowers, they're seriously the best. You have them on your farm you said?" I gave a quick confirmation with a nod. "Would you mind if I went out there and took some pictures of them?"

Somehow I recalled the fact that Haley was into photography. "By all means come whenever you want. It's supposed to rain in the next few days, so if you come before that, you won't have to worry about mud."

"You're not too bad Farm Girl, thank you." She smiled.

"It's Kim," I gave a small, unsure laugh.

"I know, but Farm Girl is more fun to say." I didn't expect her to be the type to give pet names, but she did seem honestly happy with it.

"Sure, that's fine." I allowed her to keep using it. Emily chose that moment to come in from her bedroom/work area. "Emily! Hi, I came to request some clothes." The words made her light up at the idea. "Do you have time to work in an order? Everyone tells me you are the person to come to."

"Absolutely!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me back to her room. There were spools of cloth everywhere, each one a different color or material. "What would you like?"

"Something to work in," I began to explain my ideas to her. "It has to be really durable. I want it mainly for the summer time, so make it breathable and light if that's somehow possible. I don't really care about modesty here. I want to be able to move and work and be cool, that's all. I'm not going to wear it into town or where people can see me. In other words, I would work in my bikini if it wouldn't tear up in three days."

"I know exactly what you mean." Emily clapped her hands together in front of herself. "Just one outfit?"

"Two or three if you can. I don't really care if it's all the same or different, just _please_ make it breathable and cool for the summer time. My overalls are killing me already and my jeans are rubbing my legs raw with all the sweat."

The blue haired woman put a hand on her chin and began circling me. "Hmm… I can do some shorts for sure… I've seen some in movies that I've always wanted to try… Maybe a mini skirt as well… A tied together top would be perfect for you since you don't really need to worry about support." I groaned hearing that, but Emily laughed it off. "Don't be so modest, it's not like anyone notices."

"The guys tease me about it," I protested as she began measuring me. "It's become something of a running gag on Friday nights. Sam even called me 'One of the guys' once."

"Sam is very caring, you just have to get to know him. I'm sure he meant the best of intentions." She leaned to the side and then the other direction, trying to visualize me in different ways. "I'm actually glad you came over, I never got your measurements for your Egg Dress."

"Egg Dress?" I blinked at that.

"Every year we have a festival at the end of Spring. The younger generation all dress up in matching dresses and suits and have a dance. Lots of people come from the neighboring towns." Emily walked around me and moved my hair around, trying to get everything she needed. "Are you the tomboy type and prefer a suit, or a lady type and prefer a dress?"

"Dress for sure," I confirmed without too much hesitation. "I cross dress all the time, but if this is some kind of tradition, I want to be part of the tradition. Besides, I'll get to show off my feminine charm!" I got a small chuckle at that. When everything was said and done, I left with the promise of having something within the next week or two. A whistle made my horse come to me and I jumped on, riding through town and waving to everyone I passed along the way.

I made my way north, past Pierre's store and the old community center. Along the way I saw the person I had been hoping to and galloped over to them. Abigail stopped when she heard me approaching and gave a wide wave above her head. Pulling up next to her, I greeted her with a smile. "Just the adventurer I needed!"

"What can I do for you?" She pondered, accepting my hand and allowing me to assist her in getting on the horse behind me. "Oooh, you smell like green onions today. Love it." She buried her face in the back of my hair."

"I need metal ore, and thank you! I'm going to try and make wine barrels for my farm, possibly rum and beer kegs as well. I can cut down some trees and give Robin the wood in return for the planks, but the metal straps on them need to be custom forged per barrel so if I get the ore myself then Clint will do the work in exchange for the leftover materials."

"Wow, you're a smart one! I guess that just leaves the adventurer fee to think about."

"I was hoping to bribe you with all you can eat blackberries."

"Yuck, no thanks." Abigail smacked her tongue behind me as we went to the adventurer's guild. "I don't really like fruits."

"But… but your mom told me you absolutely loved Evelyn's blackberry cobbler! I even got the recipe from her to make for you!"

"Oh, I do love cobbler. It's the best dessert in the world!"

I looked back at her, giving a confused look. "You hate blackberries but you love blackberry cobbler?" I got a nod. "What is wrong with you, woman!?" She laughed at me and I just shook my head. "Fine, I'll pay you in gold. How much are you now?"

"Forty gold per hour." I gasped at that. "I just got promoted! I can officially go deeper into the mines and start taking jobs outside the city now!"

"Congratulations! The guild takes less of a cut from you now as well, right?"

"That's right. As I get higher in the ranks and require less training and maintenance to them, I get more from the customers."

"But forty gold an hour!? You cost me twenty not a month ago! Don't I get like, the buddy discount?"

Abigail snickered. "Sorry, I'm an employee not a free lance agent. You have to pay them for me."

"That sounds like a pimp." I teased her , flashing a grin back at her.

"Me love you long time!" She shot back quickly, making me laugh so hard I actually snorted out quite loudly. We entered the guild together and I went to pay for Abigail's services which she changed into her leather armor and equipped her daggers. Upon exiting, I looked over at her to take her in once again. Her hair was now pulled back in a low ponytail as to not get in her way while fighting. Her usually casually clothes were now light leather armor, and shoes were now a combat style boot made for grip and reliability rather than fashion. It was amazing how much different she looked despite being the same person. In a matter of moments she went from one of my best friends and romantic interest to my guardian and warrior.

"Here we go!" I stated as we entered the mine. I knew she had been in here several times since I last had, and has been training almost daily as well. I was still a bit hesitant from our last encounter, but her strides were more confident now. This leaked over to me and I began to feel more at ease as well. "We don't have to go too far; just get some metal. I don't care if it's copper or iron or anything, as long as I can make things out of it."

"You don't want to explore deeper?" She pondered, sounding a little disappointed. "I just got the clearance to really get down in here. The old mineshaft elevator still works, they use it all the time."

"I don't know…"

"You might get some iridium if we go deep enough!" She walked to the elevator once we reached it. "Come on, you'll be safe with me."

"… Okay." I couldn't pass up the chance to get some of that rare metal. It held a small amount of magic in it, making it almost unbreakable. I couldn't imagine having even an iridium tip on my hoe back home, or on a hatchet so I could slice through trees like a chainsaw running on jet fuel. "Just down to your new level, but that's it okay?"

"Yes ma'am." Abigail closed the elevator gates behind us and we descended with a loud bang as the gears engaged. Once down, I felt a chill run through my spine. It was a lot colder now and pitch black save for the light emitting from our lanterns. "Keep your eyes peeled," she warned me softly while reaching back to take my hand. I held onto hers tightly as we walked, looking around for some kind of metallic shine.

"Maybe we should hit the walls?" I asked after a while. I hadn't brought my good pickax with me, and was using one of the loaners by the cave entrance. I wasn't really thrilled with this outcome, but it was my fault for not thinking ahead.

"There should be something easy to get." Abigail held her lantern high. "What's that over there?"

I went with her to a small section near the floor of an area semi-hidden behind an overturned boulder, "I think it's copper? Or… gold? It's more yellow than brown."

"Gold is good, right?" Her voice was a little excited.

"I'm not sure if this is Pyrite or real gold, but if it's real then we just got ourselves a really nice dinner lined up in celebration." I grinned at her, but noticed something strange. "Hey… can you see your breath?"

Abigail exhaled, a white puff coming from her lips. "Yeah… Weird." A sudden shiver overtook both of us and I felt exceedingly cold out of nowhere. "It's chilly down here isn't it?"

"Very…" I rubbed my hands together and got my pick. "I'll work fast." A clattering sound behind us made us both turn around. Abigail pulled on my hand, making me go behind her. "What is it!?" To my horror, a humanoid shape came into our light radius. Something that looked like a skeleton wearing old tattered mining gear was lurching towards us steadily. "Oh _hell_!"

My friend let go of my hand and drew her daggers out. "What is a skeleton doing this high up in the mines!?" She moved forward carefully, watching her enemy before dodging an attack that made small pebbles bounce when it hit the ground. The adventurer attacked at once, nicking the bones with her daggers several times before being slung back by a swing of its arm. "Ow!"

"You okay!?" I almost screamed.

"Bruised," She panted out, gripping her side. "Kim, let's leave. These aren't meant to be here… we can out run it and get to the elevator." If she wanted to leave then I knew it must be something that didn't need to be trifled with. We both started to run, but I felt my feet being grabbed and locked into place. I collapsed at once and looked back, seeing red slime oozing around my legs and sticking me to the ground.

"Abby!" I screamed this time.

Before I could do anything I saw the skeleton above me, corroded pickax raised. It swung down and I almost had a heart attack. Abigail was right there above me, both daggers crossed to absorb the hit. She still collapsed to one knee when the attack landed, her butt being forced down to my back from the force of it. I heard her straining to keep the pickax fro coming any farther down and the panic gave me the adrenaline needed to struggle out from under her with my legs still being immobile. I was still sticking to the ground, but it was enough to allow my friend to deflect the weapon to the floor and away from me.

Abigail attacked again and again, her daggers clinking off the bones as if they were petrified into stone. The skeleton lashed out again and she flew through the air and onto me, knocking me back down when I had just managed to stand. "You okay?" I grunted out.

"Yeah." Her word was pain filled though. She went to work sliding her daggers through the slime. It separated like a congealed pudding, and I was able to start peeling it off.

"He's coming!" I whimpered, unsure of what to do.

"Come on…" Abigail's voice was worried now. "I can't let you get hurt…" The monster made it to us before she was done and once again she had to endure a strike to protect me. "Ugh!" The girl panted and pushed away the attack, striking a few more times uselessly. A second swing made her almost collapse onto me. "Come on… come on…" She encouraged herself. "Fight!" She slowly stood up again, arms shaking as she pushed the pickax up.

The skeleton didn't seem to mind, or care, that his hand was being pushed back. Instead it lift its other hand to reveal a hammer. Rearing back, it aimed for my legs. I screamed loudly, knowing Abigail couldn't stop it in time. The girl protecting me screamed as well, frantically trying to move and stop it. I saw the creature lurch it's shoulder and closed my eyes out of fear. I felt a blazing burn of heat flare in front of me, but no pain in my legs. I opened one eye slowly and gasped when I saw my friend.

Abigail was panting hard, one dagger keeping the pickax from hitting her and the other stopping the hammer from hitting me. This wasn't what held my attention, though. Her arms were both alight with fire, burning bright orange flames. The heat was intense and was dancing over her skin and clothes, going down to her daggers and engulfing them in the blaze. Both of the skeleton's weapons cracked and then broke, allowing her to lean forward. Springing into action, she darted forward, slashing both daggers in a crossing motion. The bones shattered instantly, scattering all over the floor and burning.

I slowly stood up, the slime having been melted into a puddle on the floor. Abigail's fire was flickering out now, dissolving around her as she panted heavily. "Abby…?"

"Are you… okay?" She asked me again, turning and woozily trying to walk to me.

"Abby!" I ran to her, catching her as she fell forward. The fire was out now and the only traces of it was the warmth on her untouched clothes. "Come on, we're getting out of here." I moved one of her arms over my shoulders and picked up my lantern. I saw a chunk of purple ore next to it, so I grabbed it and put it in my satchel, along with Abigail's daggers. "Let's go." I helped her to the elevator and we rode it up. "What was that?" I finally asked her.

"I don't know," she admitted softly. I could tell she was weak, or at least extremely tired from the battle.

"You were on _fire!_ " I stressed. "Are you burnt?"

"No," she groaned and stood mostly on her own as the elevator gates opened. We walked out uninterrupted, heading to the cave entrance where a figure was waiting for us. "Rasmodius," she acknowledged the man. I saw the wizard standing there waiting for us. I haven't talked to him much since our first encounter. Although I had apologized to him, he still kind of gave me the creeps. Not so much that I thought he was a bad person, but because he was bad with words. He often said things that were insulting or perverted without meaning them in that way. I had mixed feelings to say the least.

"I see you cast your first spell." He looked at Abigail with interest. "I knew you would awaken soon, Abigail. I'm glad to see you reach your potential."

"Spell?" I asked in shock. "Abigail has mana?"

"Oh yes," he nodded. "Just as you do, farmer. Whereas you take your mana from the ground you work, Abigail produces her own. You are in tune with Nature, she is attuned with the elements." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a purple colored gemstone that was a few inches long and about an inch thick. "Here, eat this." He gave it to Abigail, who looked at it.

"What is this?" She asked after a moment. "It looks just like Amethyst."

"It _is_ Amethyst, girl." Rasmodius scoffed. "You need minerals to create your mana, or it will draw from your body directly. Now that you have used some, you need to replenish."

"She can't eat a gem!" I protested. Despite my words, Abigail put the rock into her mouth and bit. The gemstone cracked and broke as if it were a hard candy. Very loud crunching sounds came as she chewed and I was shocked her teeth were still intact and there wasn't any blood leaking from her lips. "H-how…?"

"She shoots fire out of her hands, and you ask about what she eats? You nature types are all the same." The man shook his head. "You, Abigail, rest. Come find me when you have your energy back. Eat a lot. Amethyst if you can find it, white or red quartz will be fine too. I'll explain more when the time comes." With that, he held up a scepter and burst into light, teleporting away.

"…Wow." I breathed out.

Abigail stood up fully, looking at the gem in her hand. "This… this really made me feel better." Licking her lips, she brought it back to her mouth and bit, breaking it easily.

I couldn't help but take it from her, bringing it to my mouth and trying to bite it, only to cut my tongue on the jagged edges and hurt my jaw. "Ow…" I handed it back and sucked a bit in my mouth, tasting blood. Abigail popped the rest into her mouth and crunched away, swallowing casually. She inhaled slowly through her nose and exhaled a small puff of gem dust. "This has been one weird day…"

Abigail looked over at me fondly. "You called me Abby." I felt a blush come at that. "It made me really happy, but terrified at the same time… thinking you were going to be hurt. I couldn't help but put everything I had into making sure you got out safely… Then this desire just… turned into flames…" She looked at her hand. "I have mana…" Her eyes slowly went to me next. "…And you helped bring it out in me…" She stepped closer and enveloped me in a hug. "I guess you really are the fire in my life." Her voice whispered softly to me.


	10. Chapter 10

I was in the middle of making breakfast when Abigail knocked on my door. Fortunately for my embarrassment, I had already been working that morning, so I was dressed. I gave her a happy welcome and invited her in for some pancakes, which she readily accepted. At first I was worried she would step or kick my Junimo friends, but they seemed well versed in avoiding people's feet. They even went so far as to hop on Abigail's boots and ride on them as she walked. Amused, I had to tear myself away from watching her and returned to my griddle to pour some more batter onto it.

 **Stardust X**

 **By: Satashi**

When I flipped the pancakes, I felt Abigail sneak up behind me and bury her face in my hair, shamelessly hugging me from behind. "What do I smell like?" I pondered curiously, holding back a laugh. She was much more aggressive in showing her feelings. It was something that embarrassed me, but at the same time made me feel special and wanted. I needed it sometimes, and Abigail was always ready to smother me with affection.

"Delicious," she answered playfully.

"I'm not a gem, don't eat me." I briefly pondered what it was with the girls in the area and wanting to nom on me. Maybe something was in the food that made them want to eat flesh. Was that how the zombie apocalypse was going to start? Here In Stardew Valley?

"What are you grinning about?" She asked curiously.

"Nothing, nothing." I plated the pancakes and poured the rest of the batter onto the cook top to finish them off. "Did you talk to the wizard guy like you planned on doing today?"

"Rasmodius, and yeah." Abigail moved away from me and hopped up to sit on my countertop, almost crushing a white Junimo. "He explained it to me in more detail and offered training to hone my newfound abilities."

"Abby the witch… or wizard? Does sex change what you're called?"

"I don't know, are you offering?" I almost dropped my spatula at that remark and turned away, blushing furiously. "Forty gold an hour and I'm all yours." Abigail pressed her luck.

"A-Abby!" I almost burnt myself trying to poke the pancakes and that was enough for her to ease off of me.

"I'm a mage," she informed. "There are a lot of others like me out there, even one in our guild in town. We aren't as common as standard adventurers, but it's still nice to be in a special class. Apparently I'm affiliated with fire, which is good for fighting."

"Wow, that's amazing." I plated the next batch and nodded over at the table. Abigail joined me and we both sat down to a heaping stack of pancakes. "Here, homemade maple syrup." I passed her the bottle. "From my own trees!"

"Wow, that's so cool!" Abigail poured some out in appreciation. "That reminds me, you're super accepting and calm about me having mana. My parents freaked out."

I knew this would come up, and have been trying to think of how to explain it to her. "The wizard, Rasmodius, told me I had mana as well. I never brought it up because I never thought I needed to. When I first came here I saw all sorts of things around the house and farm. Once I started working and planting… I saw more things. The Junimo, you know of them?" I took the moment to stuff some pancakes into my mouth while she nodded. "I can see them. They are all over the place. One is sniffing at your pancakes right now." This made Abigail look down at her food. "I don't know much about my powers, or what my mana can do, but from what I understand…" I motioned with my fork while talking. "I absorb energy from the land, and when I plant or water or work with it, I put some of it back in, only focused on what I'm doing… Makes my plants grow faster and better."

"That's… really helpful." Abigail looked impressed. "So I'm eating some of your magic now?"

"Seems so," I agreed. "I just accepted it and enjoy it. The Junimo are my friends and really help me out as well."

"I see…" She looked around the house. "How many are over here now?"

I began pointing. "White, Red, Blue, Green, Teal, Dark Blue, and Purple are here now. I think the rest are in the fields working their magic on my crops."

"So… am I going to step on them or anything? I've seen them in books, they're super tiny."

"Apparently they avoid you really well. I found that out this morning."

"Oh…well… Ok…. I'm sorry if I hurt any of you little guys." She smiled at me. "I'm glad you told me, I feel like we're really two of a kind now."

"Mmhmm, me too." My phone chose that moment to bleep at me and vibrate on the table. "Oh, Leah." I almost regretted saying the name, as I wasn't sure if Abigail would get upset. Instead, the girl just smiled at me and nodded. I picked up the phone and tapped it. "She says… she wants a picture of my ear."

"Your _ear_?" Abigail couldn't hold back her surprise. "Why does she need your _ear_?"

"She's painting a picture of me," I laughed happily. flipping my loose hair out of the way, I held my phone up to the side and took a picture. "There, sent."

"A picture hmm?" Abigail finished off her last bite and chewed on it slowly before talking around it. "What kind?"

I felt my cheeks color darkly. "Uhm…a tasteful picture of me in underwear?"

"Ohhhh…" She seemed to accept that. "Can I see it when it's done?"

I felt a little hotter. "Th…That's up to Leah."

"I'll ask her." Abigail took out her phone and started tapping on it. I felt like I could die of embarrassment at that moment, but didn't stop her. A moment passed and her phone played a tone that I recognized from the Metal Gear game series. "She says _'Absolutely! I'd love to show you as soon as it's done. I'll let you know and you can swing by whenever you like!_ ' Seems like she's excited to show it off."

"I-I see…" I never really thought about that. Of course Leah would display it, it's the first time she's ever drawn anyone like that, and it seems like she's putting in a lot of hours on it. "I'm not sure how I feel about people seeing me in my underwear."

"Even if it's just a painting?" Abigail, to my surprise and enjoyment, stood up and picked up our dirty dishes to take to the sink and start washing. "Is that the same as a normal picture?"

"Would you be ok with it, if it were you?"

Abigail shrugged. "I think so. She's probably putting a lot of love into it, so I think it would be really flattering." I considered that. It was very true, and I'm sure Leah wouldn't show it to anyone who would think bad things about it or me. I felt a little sheepish at even thinking about it. "I'd like to see you like that for myself one day," she pressed on. "But for real, not a painting."

I coughed. "Wh-what?"

Abigail replied nonchalantly, her usual flirty mood coming back. "Oh you know, whenever you want to take a picture and text it to me."

"Oh I am _not_ texting you a picture like that." I denied her, crossing my arms. "You perv."

"What if I asked nicely?" She inquired, drying the plates.

"Nope!"

"Really nicely?" She looked around at the cabinets and I pointed to the area where I kept them.

"Not a chance."

She walked over to me and leaned forward, a large grin on her face. "Really _really_ nicely?" She held up her phone with one hand and playfully tugged on my shirt with the other.

"R-Right now!?" I shook my head quickly. "No! For real no! I'm not wearing anything sexy!"

"Oh-ho!" She stood up straight, triumphantly looking down at me. "So later is okay then!?"

"I… I… You tricked me!" I stood up and walked away from her, only to get pounced onto the couch. Her hands tugged on my pants, pulling the baggy jeans down enough for her to take a snapshot. The picture clicking sound came and I franticly tried to turn around and grab her phone. "N-No! Don't look at that!"

"How _adorable_!" Abigail's eyes were practically laughing at me. "Were those _chickens_ on them!?" I felt like I would die, trying hard to reach the phone which she was holding away from me. "They are! With little eggs and chicks as well! Oh my, I have to show Leah this!"

"NO!" I tried once more to grab her phone but she ran out of the house with me hot on her heels. "I'll let you take one later, but don't keep that one! Please!" She was laughing merrily, running around in circles while I tried to get her. Finally, after I was too tired to chase anymore, she quit as well. She nudged my panting form and showed me her phone.

"I never even saved it," she laughed through gasps of air. "I hit cancel right away."

"You… You…" I stood up and fumed at her. "You tricky little… minx! I was so embarrassed!"

"Like I would do something without your permission." She stuck her tongue out.

"Ugh!" I was mad at her, but not in a serious way. She looked so pleased with herself at her little prank, and I had fallen into it hard. "So mean!"

"That's me!" She came back to me and put her arm over my shoulders, phone up for a selfie. "Say cheese!" I gave the phone a pout and let her take it. Right before it made the sound, I felt her lips on my cheek. I swallowed and looked over at her smiling face. "I'll take this one instead," she told me happily. "If that's okay with you."

"… Yeah." I smiled as best I could, trying to hide my shyness. "You can keep that one."

Abigail stayed with me most of the day, helping me out with my chores and getting a taste of the farm life. Currently my list of things to do each day was short compared to what it could be, but I didn't really want to push into some of the things that other farmers did. Marnie had all sorts of animals for sale just south of me, so I didn't want to impose upon her business by selling my own. This of course led me to choosing not to build any barns or coops on my land, despite profit being available to me. I knew winter would be hard on me, but if I saved up enough, I knew I could last through it.

After I had all my crops watered and weeds pulled, I allowed Abigail to help me start clearing more of the land that I hadn't had time to clean yet. We worked together to dress up a large patch for a new garden and I could really tell she was about to give out at any moment. "You going to be okay?" I pondered aloud, slamming my hatchet through a small sapling and then uprooting it.

"You do this every day?" She wheezed out, leaning onto my hoe for support."I train and do exercises , learn swordplay and endurance strengthening… And this is killing me."

"I think it's because of my mana. Speaking of, how is yours? Do you feel fine?"

"Just peachy," Abigail breathed out. "I had some quartz this morning as a snack before coming over." I still wasn't used to her new ability to literally eat gemstones like hard candy, but it was an endearing trait to say the least. I bet she really enjoyed showing her parents her talents at doing that. The thought of eating made my stomach growl at me and I realized we had been working most of the day and into the late afternoon.

"I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed when I realized what that meant. "We completely skipped lunch! I bet you're starving!"

"Oh, yeah, I am a little hungry." She took out her phone and checked the time. "Oh! I was supposed to be home a little bit ago. I better head off or I won't make it for dinner."

"You can eat with me here," I offered instantly.

"Thanks, but my parents are really trying their best to work with me and accept how I am. In return they only asked that I try to eat dinner with them at the table every night if I could. I used to eat in my room or get something myself at the Saloon… I think they want some more quality bonding time with their _new_ daughter the mage." She gave a smile. "My mom even brought me a topaz she got from a small shop nearby. It was really low quality so it was super cheap. Taste like honey, actually. Really chewy like a gummy bear."

"Topaz is chewy…" I shook my head. " I see magical creatures and absorb energy from the land, and I still think you're weird."

"To each their own." Abigail pointed a finger out at me and a cute little flame came to life over it. "I summon fire at my call, and I think you're an oddball that has imaginary friends." We both laughed at each other before she gave a short little wave and handed my hoe back to me. I offered a ride on my horse, but she turned it down in favor of a nice stroll. Back when I first got here, walking to town was a task I wasn't really up for nor enjoyed doing. Now though, after a few months of working my butt off and not eating fast food, I found I could actually jog it and not be super exhausted when I arrived. Maybe that was the Junimo's magic as well, but I wasn't sure. I barely knew anything about my powers at all.

As I walked back to the house, I stopped at my strawberry patch. I had harvested them already, and there were tiny buds still growing but would take another few weeks before the next gathering. Testing, I kneeled down and stuck out my hand to them. "Grow." I spoke softly, getting nothing. "Please grow?" I tried again, waving my hand in a light circular motion. "Grow plant grow!" I shook both hands at them and even did the jazz fingers. "…I guess not." Standing, I went back into the house to call it a day.

The air conditioner felt wonderful as I came in, but it was still struggling to cool my whole house. I briefly wondered if Robin or maybe Maru could do something with it to make it better. I'd love central heat and air instead of just the window unit in the living room… I'd have to ask. As I made my way to my bedroom I took off my sweaty clothes and tossed them into a hamper to, possibly, wash later. I would probably wait until I had literally nothing else to wear before that happened though.

Stopping by my vanity, I gave myself a once over. My bra was simple white with blue straps and my panties, as Abigail discovered earlier, were matching white with chickens all over them. "Why would anyone want to see me in these?" I asked the green Junimo sitting on my dresser. "I can understand that lingerie I have, but this is… so plain." I modeled in front of the mirror and sighed. "Abigail would laugh if I sent her this… what do you think?" The Junimo shook it's head. "How do you even pose for that?" My laptop was opened and I hit a button on it to wake it from hibernation mode. I spoke my words as I typed, ignoring more of my friends now gathering around me to watch. "How…to…pose…for…selfie."

I looked at the image results and made a face. "I said how to pose, not how to raise ducks…" My phone beeped at me but I ignored it for now. "Okay.. top angle, stick out chest, look up, stick butt out behind…" I really thought I'd look funny doing that. "I'd prefer something like I did with Leah… I'm not really one of those girls, you know?" I picked up my buzzing phone and laid on my bed, holding it above. I shifted slightly and smiled up at it, taking a picture of my messed up hair, sweaty face, and just the top of my bra showing. "There. That's me." I tapped the message notification at the top that had Abigail's name on it. "And send." I smiled as it beeped at me. I ran my finger down to pull up the whole message chat and froze solid when I read it.

 _Abigail: Hey! I thought we could do a group chat!_

 _Leah: Oh hi! That sounds great. It gets lonely here sometimes. What are you two up to?_

 _Abigail: Just got home from Kim's farm. I helped till a plot of land!_

 _Leah: That sounds hard. I bet you two are both all sweaty now._

 _Kim has sent a picture to chat!_

I felt my heart go up into my throat and my stomach turn as the little speech bubbles popped up from both girls and stayed there for what seemed like ages as they typed. Both chat bubbles vanished after a bit before Leah's came back up. Abigail's came up a moment later and then Leah's disappeared, followed once again by Abigail's. My breath was still almost nonexistent for the next little bit before finally I saw a reply.

 _Leah: You look cute all sweaty! Are you that bad Abigail?_

 _Abigail: A little worse actually. But I did enjoy the picture!_

 _Leah: Isn't she sexy like that?_

 _Abigail: You know it!_

I finally breathed out a sigh of relief. I was so thankful they were so easy going with this. As their texts continued, I simply laid on my bed and watched them go one by one, replying every now and then as well. When Abigail said she had to eat dinner and Leah wanted to get back to her painting, I said I was going to take a shower. Abigail instantly asked for another picture with all sorts of smiley faces behind it while Leah simply told me to enjoy myself from such a hard day's work. I sent back a heart to both of them and left my phone on my bed while I got undressed the rest of the way. "I have the best friends in the world," I told the Junimo who were still with me in the room.

* * *

When I awoke the next morning, I could feel the heat already bearing down on me. I had kicked the covers to the foot of my bed and was sweating already. My air conditioner was on still and my door was open, but I didn't feel any cool air waiting for me as I went into the living room. Upon closer inspection, my unit was blowing out slightly cool, damp air. "No, no, no, no…." I asked of it softly, flipping the switch to the off position in hopes it had just frozen over on the outside. "Don't do this to me…" I made sure to turn on every fan in the house before putting on some tight jeans, the only ones not smelling like dirt, and a light white tee shirt that didn't cover much of my stomach. My hair was pulled up into a high ponytail to keep it off my neck and I grabbed a homemade granola bar on my way out for breakfast.

The sun was just coming up when I left my house, casting a reddish orange glow over my crops. I shouldered my watering backpack and filled it up with the little pond near my house. The cool water felt great running down my back and I debated watering myself for a moment. Instead, I went over to my crops and started giving them a healthy drink for the day. A lot of red caught my eye with my strawberries and I kneeled down, eyes going wide when I realized the crop I had messed with the night before was actually sprouting at an alarming rate. "Oh wow…" I gave a small laugh. "I guess I can do this after all!"

Standing up full height, I concentrated as I watered them. Willing myself to try and give them my mana, I walked around everything while sprinkling them. At first I couldn't tell any difference, as I was kind of expecting some magical green glow to envelop everything, but by the time I was half way done with my watering I started feeling a bit weak. The end came pretty soon, but I was struggling to walk correctly with the backpack on. Sure enough, I fell and landed with a thud. The watering pack was shrugged out of and I panted hard, gasping for air. I stayed on my back for quite a while, unable to really walk. Deciding to just rest, I began eating my breakfast. Crunching on the nuts and seeds held together by maple sap that I turned into a thick syrup, I started to feel better almost at once.

I was a little confused at my body today and decided that I should probably stop by Harvey's and get a check up to see if something was wrong. I shouldn't have collapsed so easily and I most definitely shouldn't have recovered so quick on just fruits and seeds. As I stood, I wiped sweat off my forehead and looked towards the front of my farm. A car was pulling in and parked near my house. To my surprise I saw Haley get out and wave over at me.

By the time I made it to her, she had popped the trunk and was assembling a camera that looked beyond expensive. "Hi!" I greeted her. Haley was wearing a very light sundress that lightly clung to her figure and went to her mid thigh, showing her smooth legs off. Her feet were covered in simple white sandals, definitely not the best to be tracking through my farm but cute none the less. "Decided to take some pictures of the sunflowers?"

"I was really wanting to," she agreed readily. "Where are they at?"

"Waaaay over there!" I pointed out near my fruit trees. "I try to keep the flowers away from my crops so they don't spread weeds or try to take over my beds."

"Oh… Wow, that's far. No wonder you told me not to come after a rain."

"It's not bad, here I'll give you a ride." I gave a hard whistle and my horse came over to us. "Meet Okami." My horse nudged Haley with its nose and got a laugh.

"He's cute!" She praised him, getting another nudge. "Hey, don't knock me over!"

I jumped up onto my horse easily and offered her a hand. "Here, climb up."

"Without a saddle?" She looked nervous. "I don't know…"

"It's easy! I'll make sure you don't fall." She reluctantly took my hand. "Jump and climb up." She did as requested and I had to pull hard to get her in front of me. It took a moment for her to settle down but after she was steady I heard a happy laugh. "See? Easy."

"Not at all!" She giggled. "Whoa!" She held the horse with both hands as we began to walk. "I might fall!"

"You won't fall." I put an arm around her waist and held her close as we began to gallop across the fields. Haley, to my utter surprise, was very vocal about how neat it was to be on a horse like that. She was giggling constantly and when I hopped off at the end, she was smiling ear to ear. "Told you." I offered her my hand again. "Now come down."

"I think I really will fall," she denied. "Is there an easy way?"

"Just slide your leg over and hop down." I grinned. "Or is that pretty little dress going to get dirty?" Haley sniffed at my tease and did as I asked. I could tell she was going to fall before she did and I caught her easily. "Oopsies!" I laughed at her terrified face. "See, I told you I wouldn't let you fall."

"Wow, you're really strong." She gave a half laugh, half embarrassed cough. "Thank you, Farm Girl."

"You're welcome, City Girl." I teased right back at her. "Take all the pictures you want, I'll be over here trimming some of the grass down for Marnie. When you want to head home just let me know and I'll ride you back, okay?" I got a nod and I began to go about my normal routine. I had struck up a fantastic deal with Marnie not too long ago. My field was over grown with grass that was perfect for hay, and she needed as much as she could get stored up for the winter. In return I had a tab from her that was insanely in the positive that I spent on milk and eggs and sometimes when she went into the city to sell her animals she came back with meat to sell to the village. I took advantage of that _really_ quick, and my fridge and freezer were packed with enough food to last me for weeks.

Haley stayed for a lot longer than I thought she would. The girl actually made her way around my farm, taking pictures of lots of things. I wasn't really sure what all there was to be interested in, but I didn't mind. It was past lunch when I rode by her again and noticed she looked about ready to go. She accepted my invitation and rode back with me to her car. I once again helped her down, this time literally lifting her off the horse and setting her on her feet. "You're really strong!" She praised me as I let her feet touch the ground. "Are you sure you're not a farm guy?"

"I'm sure!" She made me laugh.

"Can I get a quick picture of you?" She held up her camera. "In front of your house?"

"Sure!" I walked up to my house and turned around. "I'm getting used to having my picture taken."

"Are you?" She was interested. "By who?"

"Leah and Abigail." I wasn't really sure how to pose for her.

"Oh that's right, you're…"

"I am." I snickered at her. She snapped a picture of my laugh. "Does that bother you?"

"No," She admitted, looking a little shy. "It's just… weird."

"Weird how?" I moved my arms out as if motioning to my house and she took another picture.

"Just… you know… how do you…" She held up a finger with one hand and made a circle with the other and moved it in and out. "You know…"

I blushed at that question. "We-we… uhm… lots of ways! It's perfectly natural!" Haley took the chance to take a picture of my red face.

"So it's… just normal?" She looked at me.

"Yeah.. when you love someone and want to have sex, you just… find what feels good. You don't have to have one specific thing to make love. You just need the feelings behind it."

"Oh…" She blushed a little too. "So, like, is it… nice… with another girl?"

I was starting to get the hints. Was there something in the food here that not only turned people into zombies but made them really open and accepting about their sexuality as well? "It's nice with anyone you want to be with, boy or girl." I informer her softly. "And you just need to want to, there's no special things you need, no weird positions or… attachments… or… things. Just, you know, feel nice."

Haley looked at me a moment and decided to ask one more thing, although she looked very unsure. "Okay…Thank you Farm Girl." I guess she changed her mind. "Could you keep this between us? I don't want people thinking things."

"Absolutely." I beamed at her and gave the girl an pat on the shoulder. "You're a very pretty girl, you'll make someone happy once you find out who."

"Thank you… you're not that bad."

"I try."

Haley leaned forward and sniffed at me. "Although you're really dirty and smell like grass."

"Some people like that," I defended myself.

"It's not as bad as I thought." She held up her camera and took one more photo of me. "See you around, Farm Girl."

"See ya, City Girl." I gave a light, playful salute at her to send her on her way. When the car was out of my sight, I spoke to the Junimo who came out of hiding. "Well that was odd… I wonder who she's crushing on." They made small cute sounds to reply, but I couldn't understand them. "I hope it's not Abby or Leah…" They made some more sounds and I looked down at them. "Don't think it's Farm Girl do you?" I laughed hard at that. "Oh that's rich! Farm Girl and City Girl!" I chuckled hard as I went into my house. "Don't get your dirt on my nice clean carpet, Farm Girl!" I shouted playfully to myself. "Take off those boots and change those clothes!"

* * *

I found myself heading over to Emily's house a few days later to try on my dress for the upcoming Festival. I had been cutting it close, apparently, as the event was in two days on the last of spring. Arriving, I hopped off my horse and knocked my standard little rhythm on the door. Emily called for me to enter and all at once I was swept up in Hurricane Emily. My clothes were all but tugged off and the woman was all over me, tugging and zipping and measuring. She spoke words around several bobby pins in her mouth that I didn't quite understand and before I even knew what was happening I was standing in a lovely white dress in front of a mirror. "H-hi." I finally greeted her, wondering how in the world my boots had come off and were replaced with those heels.

"Hi. Is it too tight? Too loose? Can you move?" Her words ran together and she leaned on all different sides to check.

Trying to move, I tested the dress's abilities. "Feels great around my stomach," I mused. "Really nice on my hips and…" I puffed on the chest. "I have a padded bra at home that will fill this out." I was rather impressed with it for being made so quickly. It was very lacey but light and airy. I could dance in it no problem since the bottom only went to my knees. It didn't suit me for sure, but it was a traditional dress so it wasn't really supposed to. "I really like it!"

"Great!" Emily looked relieved. "I was scared I was going to have to revise it a lot. This means your other clothes should fit as well!" I was about to ask about them, but I was attacked again, being stripped and turned and dressed up so quickly that when she was done I was panting. My hair was a mess and I looked in the mirror to see myself in something that looked _really_ flattering on me.

"Whoa!" I turned to inspect myself. "This is nice!" I had one blue jean shorts that were cut so short I could see the back pockets hanging out of them. They actually made my butt look nice as well, something I wasn't quite used to. My top was a flannel pattern red that was more or less short sleeves that went over my arms and shoulders. There was a little cloth on my back and the front was tied in a knot over my bra. It was a little slutty, but danged if I cared. No one would see me in this at home. With a cowboy hat and some boots I was sure I could pass for a really sexy model in these clothes!

My next whirlwind came and I was looking at myself in a mini skirt and a sports bra that matched. They were a matching black and red that still screamed _farmer!_ while looking like I could sweat it out in them without being uncomfortable. "Yes!" I praised her happily. "This is what I needed! Something I can get dirty in without drowning in my own sweat. Thank you!"

After paying for my clothes and getting them in a little bag to carry back to the farm, I headed out to hop onto my horse. Haley stopped me just outside and asked for the address of my farm, which I gave. Although confused at why she needed to know, I left it at that and waved goodbye to her and heading home. I was close to the bottom of town so I decided to visit Leah along the way. As I approached, I saw her outside coming from Cindersap Forrest. She had a basket in one hand, which means she was probably foraging for her dinner again. I didn't really understand why she liked doing that so much, but to each their own.

"Afternoon," Leah greeted me with a smile. She had paint smeared on her face and arms again, a sure sign that she had been painting nonstop today.

"Afternoon," I replied back in kind. "Have you eaten today?" She gave an embarrassed laugh. "Thought so. Don't forget to take care of yourself!"

"Your painting is done." She changed the subject and looked rather proud of herself. "I finished it just a bit ago."

"Can I see?" I asked all at once, delighted to find out what it looked like. She nodded and I offered my hand, pulling her up behind me on my horse. We rode the little path to her house before each hopping off skillfully. "I shouldn't be too long," I told my horse while patting his neck. "If you're hungry or thirsty, go find some food. I'll whistle when it's time to go home, 'kay?" It neighed at me and shook his head before trotting off in search or something to nibble.

"Can he understand you?" Leah looked amazed.

"I think so." Walking over to her, she took my hand and lead me into her house. Instantly she put her basket on the table and moved me over to the easel that was still near the bed instead of at its usual spot. I couldn't really believe what I saw on it. Leah was plucking off literally at least a dozen of the pictures she had taken of me from around the painting, leaving just the raw artwork. It looked wonderful and very realistic, but still had that hand stroked feel to it. Upon closer inspection I noticed the black lace of my lingerie was pretty accurately recreated as well. I had no idea how she managed to get such tiny detail in there, but from the mass of brushes nearby I could make a guess. "How long?" I breathed out.

"I have no idea." Leah admitted. "You know I don't time my artwork. Do you like it?" She asked the last part a little nervously.

"I… don't really have words." She had managed to make me look exceedingly attractive, but I didn't feel as if she had embellished any of my features at all. I was still me, but… a _sexy_ me. "It's… wow…" The girl was tugging on her braid nervously, watching me with a mixture of delight and excitement. I could tell she was holding back more questions and possibly a squeal of joy at the same time. "Leah…You're so skilled… really… I just wow."

Finally she hopped on the spot, clapping her hands together. "I'm so proud of it, you have no idea!" She finally gushed. I used brushes that I never used before to get the lace designs in there, and mixed actual gem dust I got from Clint to make your body look like it shined in the light! And, and I strained my eyes looked at the designs but I'm _so_ happy with how it turned out! I even got the little nick on your nose just right!"

I blinked. "Wait, nick on my nose? I squinted at the painting and saw a tiny, almost unnoticeable scar on my nose on the painting. "Do I have a scar on my nose?"

"Of course," Leah said proudly. "It's hard to see, but I know it's there." I moved over to the side of the room where she had a mirror and checked. Sure enough, the cut that Abigail gave me when we first met had scarred over, probably from the cleaning supplies I rubbed all over it and not really allowing it to heal properly. "Is that bad? Do you hate it?"

"No, no I don't hate it. I just never realized it scarred." That caused me to giggle slightly. "But yeah, your painting is phenomenal. What are you going to do with it?"

"Of course, every rational aspect of me is screaming to submit it to a contest I know about. If I win I get a whole lot of really expensive art supplies. A new easel, high quality brushes and a complete set of paint bases, not to mention a lot of gold to invest in other tools. "

"Wow, why ever would you _not_ do that?" I looked at her in shock.

"Because… I have to send it off to be observed and graded… and I won't get it back."

"Oh. Okay, I understand that." I wasn't super thrilled about a lot of people observing every aspect of me in lingerie, but at the same time I felt like it was the best choice for Leah to make. "You should go for it," I encouraged her. "For real, you'll have to get used to letting your art go, even if it really means a lot to you. I can't imagine putting that many days into something just to never see it again, but that's just how it works I guess. You can always scan it or take a picture of it to keep for yourself? The memories and emotions will always be there, right?"

"It's not that easy," Leah sighed. "I know I _should_ , but at the same time it's my first one like this… and it's you. It's special."

I thought about that. "Yeah…I understand." I didn't want to push her to make a choice though. "Hey… tell you what… If you do end up submitting it, I'll come back if you want me to…. and I'll let you do two sessions this time. "

The girl looked over at me and bit her bottom lip. "Two?" I nodded. She hesitated and I could tell the next question already. "Without clothes on?"

"M-Maybe without top? Maybe. Probably not. I can't promise. But two." My answer made her a little less enthusiastic about the deal, but I saw that she was considering it. "I'm sorry, I'm just… really shy about being naked."

"D-don't say it like that!" She waved her hands, blushing. "Don't make me feel like I'm pressuring you!"

"You're not!" My voice cracked in my hurry to answer, making her bite back a laugh. "Really, I just don't think I'm that pretty… It's embarrassing."

"You are pretty," she took both my hands. "I'm just really eager to capture that… but for real, don't worry about it. I can do you with clothes on this time."

"I don't mind a little." I felt like burying my face in my hands. "L-Let's just get your painting wherever it needs to be for now. We can discuss more later. Right now, the most important thing is that you can have whatever you need to make whatever you want."

"…Thank you." Leah stepped forward and kissed my cheek. "You're amazing, have I told you that before?"

"Maybe once or twice." We both giggled and she started playing with my fingers, glancing at me every now and again before looking away with a silly grin. I was going to say something about how cute it was, but her stomach growled out at that moment. "Eat." I poked her nose.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" She asked hopefully. "Maybe we can snuggle up and watch a movie afterwards?"

"I'm sorry, I have to get home. My horse is still out there and I don't want to risk falling asleep. I'm really tired today." To stress my point I felt a yawn coming on. "But next time for sure. It feels really nice and cool here, I'd love it."

"The breeze from the water really cools my house down. Why? Is yours hot?"

"Blazing. My air conditioner is going out I think."

"If it does, you're welcome to stay here anytime you want." Leah looked happy at that idea.

"Thank you, I might have to take you up on that."

Leah walked with me to the door and waited a moment there before finally speaking what was on her mind. "Hey, can I ask something?"

"Sure?"

She met my eyes and was giving me a really shy but eager look. "If you do pose for me again… can I pick something for you to wear?" She smiled nervously. "Back then…I was always asked to wear things for pictures but I've never gotten to pick something out for someone I cared about… I'd like to do that."

I felt suddenly a little nervous about what I was getting myself into, but I couldn't say no to that look. "Yeah… anything you want."

"You're the best." I got another hug. "I'm really painted out right now though. I'm going to work with wood for a while to get my groove going again. After that, I'll see about something."

"Take your time." I giggled. "I'm still nervous about it. Maybe then it'll be easier."

"…Sweet dreams, Kim."

"Sweet dreams, Leah." She held onto my hand until I had walked far enough away where she had to finally let go. I called out with a loud whistle and heard my horse come galloping up to me at once. Mounting him, I gave another small wave before going off to my house. When I finally arrived, I gave my horse some extra feed and water before allowing myself to check my phone.

 _Leah: I finished the painting! Come by whenever you want Abigail._

 _Abigail: Awesome! I'll be there tomorrow!_

 _Leah: Can't wait, huh?_

 _Abigail: Kim in underwear? Sign me up!_

 _Kim: I look amazing in it too, she cheated somehow._

 _Leah: I did not! The green lingerie just really fits you._

 _Abigail: Wait, she's in Lingerie!? Now I have to see it right now!_

 _Leah: Abigail!_

 _Kim: Abigail!_

 _Abigail: What?_

 _Leah: I'm going to eat now._

 _Abigail: Wait, send a picture first! You can't tease me and leave me!_

 _Kim: Goodnight, Abby._


	11. Chapter 11

I felt a little drained when I woke up for the day. I groaned lazily as I sat up in my bed, the morning sun just barely peaking over the mountains. My legs were a little shaky, but I pressed on. Tomorrow was the spring dance and I needed to be sure everything was taken care of for my day off. I picked up my automated cup of coffee from my machine and put in three heavy spoonfuls of sugar followed by a healthy dose of vanilla creamer. I loved the way coffee smelled but I hated the taste. The caffeine was a nice boost to my morning and Robin told me the magical mixture of cream and sugar to make it go down easy. I would always be grateful for that.

 **Stardust XI**

 **By: Satashi**

My eyes were a little unfocused as I shouldered Maru's water backpack to get ready for the day's sprinkle. As I poured, I willed my mana into them again. They were already growing insanely fast, skipping what seemed like weeks overnight. The progress really impressed me, and I was really looking forward to the next harvest so I could treat my friends to a nice dinner.

The little Junimo were starting to gather around me as I worked, waving their hands at me. "Hey little guys," I greeted them woozily. "Are you going to help me water?" I tried not to step on them, as they were really getting all in my way this morning. "Hey… careful now, don't get underfoot." I moved to the next patch and wiped the sweat from my forehead. I was feeling really hot despite the sun just now starting to turn the sky orange. "Come on guys… really…"

My steps were carefully taken as more gathered around me. They were now tugging at my jeans and making strange sounds. They looked a little worried actually. "Is everything ok?" I took a deep breath of air, as the humidity was making it hard to breathe. "Are you hungry? I'll… I'll get you some food as soon as I'm done watering." I took a few more steps and stumbled lightly. "Wow, I'm tired…" I began watering again, focusing my inner energy into the stream to feed my precious plants so they could grow up strong and healthy.

The Junimo were really jumping at my feet now, and when I looked down at them I felt my world blur. "I feel… funny." I staggered again and shook my head. "What's going on?" My friends were swarming me now, trying to pull on my jeans to keep me from falling over. Their efforts were in vain though and I fell hard. I tried to get up but couldn't quite find the strength. "What's…wrong… with me?" I felt my chest burning and I caught a glimpse of my worried friends before everything went black.

"Kim? Kim!" I felt shaking and slowly realized that I was being spoken to. "Kim, wake up!" I managed to creak open my eyes just enough to make out a blurry image of Maru's face. "Oh thank Yoba." She unstrapped the watering pack and moved me to lay on my back. I could make out the dull reddish orange glow of the sun, but shapes were avoiding me. Suddenly a light came over and I blinked. "Kim, focus on the light." I looked at it. "Kim, the light, look at it."

"…Am…" I coughed out. The light moved and I blinked before finding it again.

"Oh man…" Maru turned off the light. A few seconds went by as I heard some rustling. "Doctor Harvey, I need you at Kim's farm. She passed out and isn't very responsive." I tried to deny that, but couldn't quite seem to remember how to properly talk. "Yeah… Okay… Kim, what do you remember last? How long have you been here?"

I struggled to form words. "Not… long… I saw… the sun rise…" I looked over and felt the world spin along with me. "It's… not…risen yet…"

"Oh man… Doctor, she's been out since this morning. I need you!" I heard her say something else to me but she started to fade out.

"…and dehydrated. She'll need to take it easy for a few days." A new voice was talking. I kind of recognized it as Harvey's but wasn't too sure. "Oh, are you awake?"

"Thirs-" I coughed hard and felt my body violently react to it. My skin felt tight and sore, my joints aching. Luckily for me I had a straw put near my mouth. I drank as best I could, loving the cold liquid making my parched throat feel better. "Thank… you."

"What happened?" The good doctor sat down next to what I now realized was my bed. I wasn't sure how I got there, but I could make a guess. I moved the covers down a bit and realized I was wearing one of my pajama tops. "Maru changed you, hope you don't mind. We needed to apply some lotion as you were exposed to the sun for quite a long time."

"I…" I really felt drained, as if talking alone was stealing my energy. "I was just… watering my plants."

"Have you been sick? Anything at all?"

"No… just tired." I strained to think. "Really tired lately."

"I see…" The doctor rubbed his chin. "I can't tell much until I get some blood work done. I'll need to take some." I shook my head but he gave me a stern look. "Kim. I need to."

"…Okay." I looked away and winced at the needle entering my arm. Holding my breath, I tried to focus on anything other than my life force being sucked out of my body. Thankfully it was over shortly and I got a patch over it. "Ow…"

"You're a big girl, needles aren't a bad thing."

I frowned at him. "I don't want… to be a big girl… Needles hurt." I looked for the water glass and found him getting it and offering the straw back to me. I drank heavily again and sighed out as I relaxed back into my pillow.

Harvey nodded at me and then turned to look away when he heard the door open. "Ah, that must be your guest." Before I could ask, he stood up and walked into my living room. Just a few moments passed and a stressed out Abigail rushed to me side.

"Kim! Are you okay? Do you hurt? What happened?" She grabbed onto my shoulders and I winced hard. "I'm sorry! What's wrong!?"

I saw Harvey put a hand on her shoulder and gently guided her away to sit into a chair. "I'm going to find out what caused this, but she's suffering from heat exhaustion. I'll know more by tomorrow. For now, keep her hydrated and in bed. You don't just faint for no reason, especially not for extended periods of time. "

Abigail nodded and gently took my hand. "She'll be okay though, right?"

Harvey started packing up his supplied into a giant bag. "I wouldn't let her stay at home if her vitals weren't up to par. I really need to come back with an IV drip though."

"No." I stated flatly. "No needles."

"Kim, really-"

"No." I said again, more firmly this time.

Abigail looked at Harvey, who was about to try once more. I gave him a stern look and shook my head. "You're being very immature, Kim."

"Don't care." I hated needles. I couldn't keep one in my hand all night without ripping it out and probably causing more damage. With a sigh, the doctor crossed his arms.

"Can't you force her?" Abigail's voice was concerned.

"I can't. I can let her go tonight while you're here, but if she gets worse then I'm coming back in an ambulance and taking you to the hospital." He looked right at me. "And if it comes to that, I won't listen to your childish demands. Understand?" His tone of voice didn't match his body at all, and I suddenly felt very defeated hearing it. He seemed to accept that as a confirmation and he nodded. "Good!" His regular kind tone was back now. "I'll leave you in the care of this lovely girl here, and come check tomorrow to check in."

"Wait… tomorrow?" I suddenly panicked. "The spring dance!"

"You're not going." Abigail demanded. "You're staying right here in bed."

I couldn't say no to that, and I don't think I could dance anyway. "Emily put all that work into my dress…" My eyes closed and I really felt like I would hurt her feelings by not showing up.

"Air conditioner is fixed!" Maru's voice shouted into the room at that moment. "Just needed a little love is all. I hooked up a booster of my own design to really get it going." She came to my bed and bent over to look down at me. "How are we feeling?"

"Great," I lied to her with a small smile. When she didn't move I gave a small chuckle. "I hurt all over, feel tired, am starving and thirsty, can't really see straight, have a massive headache, and I really need to go to the bathroom."

"That's a good girl." She pet my head. "Okay, Abigail." She pointed at my friend. "I can stay with her if you need to go home?"

"I'm not leaving." She insisted. "I'll call home in a bit and let them know."

"Awesome. In that case, I think we're good here." Looking back over at me, she held up a finger. "I know you have a record of over working yourself, but seriously, take it easy. I like you, I don't want to see you hurt. Okay?"

"Yes ma'am." I gave a tiny salute with two fingers. "I'll be a good girl."

"Glad to hear it! Shall we, doctor Harvey?"

"Let's shall." They both waved their goodbyes and headed out. "Oh, Leah! Hello. Come on in, Kim's in her bedroom."

"O-Okay?" Leah's voice drifted to the room and I gave Abigail a questioning look.

"I didn't tell her, I just came right over when I Harvey got the call in our store." She turned to look at the door when Leah came in.

"Hello?" She gave me a concerned look. "Are you sick?"

"You came without knowing?" Abigail blinked at her.

Leah was starting to really look more and more worried. "Why? What's going on? Why are you in bed already Kim?"

I was going to answer, but the energy to do so wasn't really coming to my demands so Abigail took over for me. "She passed out in the fields this morning. Maru found her about an hour ago."

Instantly Leah dropped the bags she was carrying and rushed over to me. "Are you okay!?" I gave a small nod, but Abigail went onto more detail.

"She's really suffering from heat exhaustion or something like that. I'm staying the night to watch after her."

"Do you mind if I stay as well?" Leah asked me softly before looking like she realized something. Turning to Abigail, she asked again. "Do _you_ mind if I stay as well, Abigail?"

"Of course not!" She defended herself. "Kim needs us right now. But your timing is incredible, how did you know to come here?"

"I didn't." She gave my hand a squeeze and went to her backpack to pull out a sealed envelope. "I was out fishing for dinner by the lake near my house. The Wizard, Rasmodius, came up to me and handed me this letter and told me to gather my things and come to the Farm. He requested that I give this to you, Abigail, and to make dinner for my friends."

Abigail took the envelope and opened it, reading aloud. "My dear student Abigail, I'm writing you to let you know that your idiotic fri-" She cleared her throat. "That your friend Kim has drained her mana supply to a critical point and then used more without giving herself a chance to recharge. She is going through mana withdrawal, most commonly known by us mages as _Mana Burn_. Keep an eye on her and make sure she gets a lot of rest. For the love of everything that is holy, do _not_ let her stay out of bed and feed her as many nature infused things as you can. I have sent Leah to share her fish, which is one of the only living animals that are imbued with natural mana. When she gets well, send her my way. I would like to scold her personally for her blatant ignorance and irresponsible actions. Tell her to read a dam- er, read a book on how to farm and what seasons are. Regards, Rasmodius."

I bit my lip hearing all of that. "I guess I messed up."

"Messed up?" Abigail's voice rose slightly. " _Messed up_!?" She stood and paced the room, trying to find the words. "Kim! You over used your mana to _this_ point!? You… You drained yourself to make the plants grow that were out of season? I don't even know how faming works, but I know you can't correctly grow Springtime crops when it's blazing hot outside! Yet your plants are all huge and healthy and ready for another harvest! You don't have any _idea_ how much you could have hurt yourself!"

"Abigail!" Leah stood as well. "I don't think this is the time to be yelling at her. I don't really follow this, but she's too weak to be getting a lecture right now."

"What if we didn't find her!?" Abigail almost shouted. "She would still be out there, right now, laying in her field! What if some monster came by, or a wolf?"

"There aren't any monsters nearby, and wolves are rarely seen this close to Pelican Town." Leah tried to argue back her points. "It's just one mistake that she made, you can't always protect her-"

"That's what I _do_!" Abigail did yell this time. "I protect her, I guard her, I _bleed for her_!" The argument was getting a little out of hand but my voice wasn't quite there yet for me to get their attention. "I have every right to tell her that she messed up and scold her for doing something so reckless!"

Leah looked like she was about to say something, but bit it back for a moment before trying again. "That doesn't mean that I have any less right to say what I'm feeling as well. Okay, she messed up. People make _mistakes_."

"Ones this big lead people to this state!" Abigail pointed at me. " If she kept on she might have died."

Leah took a breath. "She wasn't going to die-"

Abigail took a step forward. "You don't even know mana _is_ , Leah. You have _no_ clue what it's like for people like us."

The braided girl swallowed thickly before trying to gather what she could of her dignity. "I see you have everything taken care of then." She reached a shaking hand to grab her backpack. "Fish are in the cooler." Her voice broke and I knew at once she was holding back tears. "You're right. I don't know. So take care of her." With that she turned and walked out.

Abigail stood still for a long moment before the sound of the front door closing snapped her out of her trance. She ran forward and through the door as well, calling out to her friend. "Wait!" Leah turned and looked at her, wiping her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Leah, I just…" Walking forward, she motioned with her hands while trying to explain herself. "I just discovered my abilities as well, and I talked with her about hers. I… I didn't warn her about this and…I feel like it's my fault." She held up a hand when Leah tried to say something. "It is. I really meant what I said in there. I do protect her. I failed this time… she's hurt because I wasn't good enough, because I didn't know enough to tell her. I'm scared and worried and angry and… I blew up on you instead. I'm sorry."

The petite girl shifted her backpack and walked forward, giving Abigail a tight hug. "Apology accepted. I'm scared too. I really don't have any idea what's going on, but it looks bad if it can put her in bed. I've seen her sick before and worked to exhaustion, but the look in her eyes is just…"

"Empty." Abigail agreed, returning the hug. "I can explain it to you, but first… Let's go back inside?"

"You really don't mind if I stay?"

Abigail smiled at her and started pulling on her hand to guide her back into the house. "You kidding? I can't cook fish! I _need_ you to stay." The joke worked and Leah gave a short laugh, wiping her eyes with her free hand. Together, they walked back into the bedroom and stood in front of the bed. "We're back."

I looked at them holding hands and smiled lightly. "Welcome back."

"Okay." Leah came over to me and leaned over to inspect me. "We're going to make you dinner. I'm thinking fish tacos."

I immediately pictured a taco, then removed the hamburger and replaced it with fish. The idea made me want to gag on the spot. "Sounds…good?" I looked at Abigail for help but she was making a similar face to the one I was trying to repress.

"You just wait." She gave me hand a squeeze. "Can we use your kitchen?"

"Make yourselves at home." I was proud of myself for making a complete thought. "Just… gonna lay back." I closed my eyes.

Abigail walked with Leah into the kitchen and looked around. "She's kind of a slob isn't she?"

"Do you do the dishes at home?" Leah asked while looking through all the cabinets to familiarize herself with the layout.

" _Yes_! Before I had my little breakdown with my parents, they made me cook and clean and all these _girly things_ that they thought I needed to know to make a great wife one day."

"Then, Mrs. House Wife, you can start cleaning up this disaster while I start on dinner."

Abigail looked at the plates on the counter and the trash that really needed to be taken out. "Why do I have to do the cleaning?"

"Want to gut and scale the fish?"

"Where's the trash bags at?" Abigail walked past Leah and her cooler full of fish to start looking through the pantry. As she worked to clean up the mess, she began explaining the properties of mana to her friend. "Basically, and this is really over simplifying things, some of us have an energy that we connect with. We call it mana, and we can change it into different forms. You might remember this from school when we learned about wild animals and monsters and the like. The same thing that can reanimate a dead body or a skeleton with no muscles also collects inside certain humans."

Leah skillfully slit open and filleted another fish while nodding. "Yeah, we had a whole section on it in our senior year. Most of us ignored it because we were in a big city. I recall hearing that most of the people who could do things like that were recruited to go to the war."

A nod. "Yeah. There are still quite a few of us around, but maybe one in twenty adventurers have this ability. Even then it still ranges from useful to pointless for battles. I can make fire." To prove her point she held up a finger and called forth a little dancing flame.

"…Wow!" Leah leaned forward. "It's warm!"

"Of course, it's fire." Abigail joked, flicking it at her friend, who jumped back from it. The tiny flame died out before it even left the girl's fingers. "Kim, on the other hand, is tuned to Nature instead of the Elements. She literally lives off the land." Moving around, the girl began cleaning while talking. "She apparently focuses her energy into water and uses that to give it to her crops. That's why they grow so big." Her voice dropped off a little. "That's also why when other farmers cycled their crops, she kept going. She gave so much of her energy that she couldn't recover it fast enough. The results… well, you saw her."

"… Yeah." Leah sighed out and slowed down a moment before picking back up. "She tried so hard, but it's starting to show that she really doesn't know what she's doing. I was amazed at everything she's done, but you're right…"

"Not by choice." Abigail replied softly. "I guess we both let our feelings kind of sugar coat everything, huh?"

"That's not a bad thing. A little sugar really helps develop friendship. If she wasn't so nice then I wouldn't be where I am now. She really went out of her comfort zone for me." Looking around some more, the girl flicked her braid back over her shoulder and began to batter the fish she had just descaled.

"Yeah, posing in lingerie? That takes some guts. You really won her over didn't you?"

"Or she won me over." Leah smiled. "I kind of… latched onto her. I came from a really bad relationship. I really don't want to go into details, but… Yeah it was just bad. I feel dirty thinking back to the things I did for him. Kim on the other hand just… burst into my house one day, sick as a dog and being carried by Rasmodius, and out of nowhere became my number one supporter. She went out of her way to encourage me, even if it was just giving me a peach on the way to town and complimenting whatever I was working on. After a while I just… really fell for her."

Moving the dishes into the washer, Abigail nodded in understanding. "Same with me. I kept my passion hidden from everyone. I tried lying to myself, telling myself that I was an adventurer. I pretended to train in the fields and boasted to myself that I could take out any monster that crossed my path." Stopping a moment, she grinned and looked over to Leah. "Did she ever tell you about the scar on her nose?"

"No! She was a little shocked that it was there when I pointed it out to her."

Laughing, Abigail leaned onto the counter. "When we met, the _first_ instance that we saw each other, I was swinging my sword. I nicked the tip of her nose and it bled like crazy!"

"You _cut_ her!?"

"Yeah!" Abigail laughed, nodding happily. "Just _swoosh_ and it was done. She then kept rubbing it with the rag she was cleaning things with and it got all infected and scarred over."

"That's… I don't know if I want to laugh or throw something at you!" The two shared a giggle. "How about instead you get a pot for me and some oil?"

"Done deal." Abigail went to work on that. "Anyway, she just accepted me for who I pretended to be. I took her into the mines and… we ran away from a slime." This earned her a concerned look. "Don't worry, we were fine… but the cat was out of the bag, so to say. I admitted I wasn't who I claimed to be. Instead of yelling at me for putting her in danger, she just encouraged me to do my best. Told me to stop hiding and to just go for it. I applied to the guild that day. Used all my allowance to pay for training." She helped cut what Leah started handing her. "After a few weeks, Kim came to the guild and she was my first client. We beat a King Slime together and I was officially accepted into the guild after that."

"So that's why you were so defensive about protecting her."

"Yeah. I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to keep her safe to make up for what I had done when we first met and went into that mineshaft together. After that, I just started to see her more and more. She became a kind of… encouragement to keep improving, you know?" She got a nod at once. "Then I started to think about her more and more. I pictured myself saving her in the mines and her jumping on me in a hug- hey don't laugh."

"Sorry," Leah turned away and tried to cover her giggles. "Keep going."

Abigail looked at her sideways a moment before she went on. "So, my daydreams became more and more frequent and then somewhere along the way I realized I had a crush on her. I was scared out of my mind! I mean, I was straight."

"So is spaghetti, until you get it wet." Lean winked at her.

"Y-yeah, so… she got me wet I guess?" Her cheeks colored as Lean had to put down her knife so she could laugh. "N-not like that! Well, maybe a little, but… okay!" Abigail focused on her cutting. "I was so confused… I didn't even know if she liked girls, or if I really liked her like that... So I asked Sam to find out for me and… well you know how that went." A sort hum made her continue. "When I was confronted in that moment I just thought… It's worth it to know. I _wanted_ to know. I had to find out how it would go. After that you and I talked at the saloon and… well, now we're in some mixed up love triangle."

"But you really care for her."

"As do you."

"I do," Leah confirmed easily. "I haven't been very vocal about it, but I think I show it enough. I feel it from her as well, but she hasn't said anything to me."

"Me either… I wonder who she likes more." It wasn't quite a question she really wanted to know the answer to.

"I don't think she likes either of us more than the other." Leah looked around in the fridge and smiled at the supplies she found. "She doesn't like your hair better than mine, or my eyes better than yours. I think she just likes us both for different reasons. She can count on you to protect her, and when I know she's in the mines with you I'm thankful for that. I don't get jealous or think that something would happen that would make her fall head over heels for you. I'm just happy that you're with her because I know she'll be safe."

"…Thank you…"

"And I think she depends on you specifically for that, but I don't feel jealous over it. I'm really happy when she comes to me as well. She tried so hard for me and it makes me so happy. How do you feel about that?"

"I was jealous that you saw her in lingerie, honestly." Abigail admitted softly. "But it wasn't so much that she was wearing it for you, but I just wanted to see it. I guess I mean I didn't mind it as much as I thought I would. You're an artist, and you wanted to do something special with her. I'm ok with that, even if you wanted to see her like that personally too. I don't feel threatened by you, and I mean that in a really good way. I'm… happy when she's with you as well. As weird as that sounds."

"Mmhmm…" The two looked at each other.

"B-but I'm not perfect by any means," Abigail continued, blushing. "I really did want to see her like that, and I kind of… asked her for pictures."

"Pictures? You wanted to sext her?"

"N-no! I just wanted to see her I her underwear. I mean, she's sexy, you know?" She got a curious nod. "And… I'm a little perverted, sure, it's not like I try and hide it. She didn't seem to mind so much as she was embarrassed out of her skull."

"Isn't that adorable?"

"Oh for real." She laughed softly. "But how does that make you feel? That I asked?"

"I'm okay with it. I don't mind showing you my painting either, you know. It's still her, even if it isn't a picture-picture. I'm okay with this."

"…Thanks."

"Thank you for being okay with me seeing her in person."

The two girls stayed silent a moment as they looked at each other. "This is really weird, but I don't feel weird… is that weird?"

Leah gave a soft sigh, but shook her head. "I don't feel weird either… I just wish I knew how she felt for sure. I know she isn't doing it on purpose, and she's really honest with her feelings. Trust me, I know firsthand what it's like to be used…"

Abigail looked at her with a mix of curiosity and uneasiness. "Who could ever use someone as kind as you?"

Leah looked down again. "I'll talk about it later with you. Right now, let's focus on us and Kim. She needs us."

"Yeah…" Abigail nodded in agreement. "Okay, so onto a better topic. You said fish tacos but you haven't done anything really that says tacos."

"Fish tacos are not tacos," Leah rolled her eyes. "Everyone thinks the same thing. The only similarity is that they have a tortilla. Now here's what we need to do…" The girl showed her friend how to arrange everything needed for them to assemble their dinner once the fish came out of the frying oil. After several minutes, each one had a plate made and a third for their friend. Together, they walked back into the bedroom and smiled before clearing their throats.

I opened my eyes lightly, looking over at them. "Hey…" I almost rasped out. Abigail helped me get to a sitting position and I rubbed my face lightly, cringing at the burnt feeling. "You two in a good mood now I take it?"

"Yeah," Abigail looked sheepish. "I apologized for yelling at her. I'm sorry for yelling at you too, but I still meant what I said. I could have been a little more tactful."

"Apology accepted." I looked down at my plate and then over to Leah. "Fish tacos?"

"Seriously, it's not what you think. Just try it."

I shot Abigail a glance, to which she returned one with an equally helpless look. Together we picked up the tortilla filled with fish, red cabbage, onion, carrot, and some sauce I couldn't quite make out. "Dink it and sink it?" I asked her.

"Cheers." Abigail tapped her taco to mine and we both took as big of a bite as we dared. I chewed gingerly at first, unsure of the taste and texture, but started to really like it. Abigail was looking at hers as well, a mixed look on her face. "It's… actually not bad." She finally said.

"It isn't like a taco at all," I realized for myself. "Not bad!"

"For a vegetarian," Abigail added in.

Leah started to say something but instead shook her head and sat back in her chair by my bed. We all ate together slowly, talking every now and then. When done, I allowed them to take my plate and go back into the kitchen. I heard the water running and was happy to know they were cleaning up. This made me realize that I, myself, really needed a good cleaning too. When they got back, I gave them both a sheepish smile. "I need a shower, and I really have to pee."

"Then let's get you in the shower!" Abigail looked rather excited at this idea. "I can hold you up and wash your back!"

Leah knocked her on her head gently, making Abigail pout. "Are you going to be okay?"

I grunted as I moved, but my body still started to obey my commands. My skin felt as it were made of leather, and my muscles seemed to be made of whatever slimes were. "I'm… not really okay." I let them help me to the bathroom and I sat on the bathtub, already weak. "Bath then, not shower."

"Do you need help?" Abigail's voice was soft this time, and she didn't have that normal playful look in her eyes when it came to her talking about my body. "Really, I can… wear a blindfold?" Her words made me giggle, which flustered her even more. "Hey, I'm trying to be nice here."

"No," I shook my head. "No blindfold, no help, I'll be alright."

"I want to be here," Leah insisted. Her voice was caring and soft, but also a little firm. "You could fall. You can barely stand."

"…Fine."

Abigail looked a little annoyed at that. "Why do you agree to her and not me?"

I smiled at her and spoke before I could really think about it. "I get really shy when it comes to showing you my body. I don't want to disappoint you." The silence after made me realize what I just said and I looked down at my hands. "I mean…"

I felt some of my hair being brushed away from my face and I lightly looked up at Abigail, who was blushing. At first I thought she was going to say something, but instead she leaned forward and kissed my forehead. With that, she sat down facing away from us and leaned back. "I'll be here."

Looking over at Leah, I gave her a smile and let her adjust the water for me. The tub filled rather quick, as it wasn't that large, and I let her help me out of my shirt. Now in my underwear, I grinned at her as best I could. "You can't see either. It's not time to paint."

"Of course," Leah agreed. She let me brace onto her and looked the other way as I eased down into the bath. With that, she pulled the shower curtain closed and sat next to the purple haired girl. "Hi," She whispered as I sank into the hot water and sighed out in both pain and relief at the same time.

"Hi," Abigail whispered back. At first I thought they were going to talk about how our relationship was advancing in this situation, but instead classic Abigail came back full force. "Did you see her panties? Little haystacks with googly eyes?"

" _Yes_! They're _adorable_!" Leah whispered back, making them both laugh.

Trying my best to ignore their giggles and whispering, I sank down so just my nose was above the water. My body was protesting everything, but something more bothered me. My insides themselves felt empty, as if I had something in me that was no longer there. I could still feel a tiny sliver of it, but nothing like I could before. It was also at that moment that I realized that I haven't seen any of my Junimo friends since I had woken up. I quickly, or at least as fast as I could, moved the curtain back to peek my head out. "Hey?"

"Yes?" Both girls asked at the same time.

"Have you heard anything in the house lately? Like anything being moved or like a cat walking around, or squeaking or anything?"

Leah looked concerned for me, but Abigail picked up almost at once. "I heard them I think. Your mana is low, don't worry about that. They're still here."

"Oh… Okay." Leah was looking at me oddly. "Can you explain for me, Abby?" I leaned back and relaxed again, my mind now at ease.

"Kim is insane and has imaginary friends." Abigail told her at once. If I had been my normal self I would have reacted spastically, but I was way too tired for that right now. Instead, I just let Leah freak out a moment before listening to Abigail continue. "No, for real, she's a total nut job."

"Abby." I pleaded with her as best I could.

"Fine," Abigail agreed with me. "She can see the Junimo, those little spirit creatures you've seen in books?" Leah nodded at her. "They live here on the farm. From what I understand, they help Kim with her crops and stuff. Apparently they're all over the place, about a dozen or so."

"At least a dozen," I spoke up, lifting my head a bit. "More are around the fields, but twelve or so live in the house with me daily."

Leah's voice was a little confused. "So there are Junimo all around us? Right now?"

"Probably," Abigail confirmed. "I've never seen them, but they apparently are very playful." Holding out her hand, she turned it palm up. "I could have one on my hands right now and not even know it." She moved it down to the floor before resting them onto her knees again, just in case one really was there.

"Wow… You're so full of surprises." Leah leaned back and looked up at the ceiling. "You both have mana, can create fire and grow plants… Can see little magical creatures and fight in the mines… I feel really out classed here…"

"You can create," Abigail spoke up before I could. "I think that's amazing. You literally take what's in your mind and make it a reality. I can make fire, but you… make emotions."

A small silence passed over us before my braided friend finally responded. "That's so sweet of you. Wow, I didn't know you had that in you."

"Don't get used to it, I'm sure it was just a fluke." They both has a small laugh.

After enjoying my bath to the fullest I finally made an attempt to clean myself. This lasted all of thirty seconds before giving up and just doing the best I could get by with. A fast dunk under water for my hair and I was ready to get out. A towel was given to me and I was helped up from behind the curtain. After securing it around myself I gave a light confirmation and soon both girls were helping me stand near the counter.

To my surprise, Abigail was looking at me intensely for a while before muttering something under her breath and leaving the bathroom. Leah simply stayed with me and helped dry my hair, draping another towel over my shoulders. Once I was dried off as best as I could I told her where my clothes were so she could grab them for me.

Leah walked into the bedroom and hesitated when she saw Abigail sitting on the bed. "Hey, what's wrong? Why did you leave like that?"

"I felt… a little wrong." The girl looked at Leah guiltily. "I know she's sick and helpless right now, but… When I saw her wet like that I couldn't get bad thoughts out of my head… so I had to leave." She shifted uncomfortably. "I'm a horrible person…"

"You're human." Leah spoke softly. "You're curious and eager to explore new things… You're a virgin?" She got a nod. "Especially if you've never experienced any of it before. Don't feel bad. I'm sure Kim would laugh it up if she knew why you had to leave. She'd be flattered."

"You think?"

"Well she would probably bury herself under the covers in embarrassment." This got a chuckle.

"How do you handle it? I mean… She's so sexy…"

Leah moved over to a dressed and opened it, looking for pajamas. "I'm not innocent myself, but right now I'm just putting it aside. Believe me, I agree with you. I'm a huge fan of her hair especially. I have a ponytail complex."

"Do you?"

"Oh yeah. Major turn on." Leah winked at her and went back to the bathroom with the clothes.

I smiled when she came back and allowed her to brace me up while getting dressed behind her. "I'm sorry this is so weird. Thank you for everything."

"Don't even mention it." Leaning back, she whispered to me softly so only we could hear. "Abigail is struggling to keep her calm. She's trying so hard… maybe give her a little hug or something?" With that she moved back and fluffed my now blown dry hair as if she hadn't said anything at all. "Ready to get back in bed? Do you have clean sheets?"

"I do actually. In my closet." Leah helped me to the bedroom and I sat in one of the chairs the girls carried in there so I could watch them make my bed with fresh linens for me. Once it was done, I let Leah guide me over to it and I fell down almost at once, completely drained already. "I'm so tired…"

"You should sleep." Abigail told me, pulling the covers up. "Can we crash on your couch?"

"Of course… extra blankets and stuff are in the closet where these were… Make yourselves at home. For real, I'll be sound asleep. Watch TV, play games, do whatever you want. I'll sleep better knowing you two aren't having a bad night."

"You got it." Abigail finished tucking me in and I smiled at her.

"Abigail?"

"Yes?"

"Your hair is really pretty." I reached out just enough to touch it. "I just wanted to let you know." My words took her off guard and she smiled as if I had just told her she had won the lottery.

"Thank you! Wow, thank you. I mean… thanks." She pulled back when I let go and gave a silly little wave. "Sweet dreams, Kim."

"Sweet dreams, Abby."

Leah gave me a fond look when the girl left and came over as well. "You made her night," she told me lightly.

"You're really kind." I took her hand. "Are you okay with that?"

"You being happy makes me happy." To my surprise she gave my finger a kiss. "I'm okay with this. I know it's weird, but… Yeah. Maybe I'm just damaged, I don't know, but… You just get some rest okay Sweetie?"

"I get a pet name now?"

"You get everything." She gave my hand a squeeze. "We'll be okay, and we'll try not to keep you up, so be a good girl and sleep lots. Get that mana of yours back."

I felt my heart pounding, and it was making my head hurt. Both of them were so special to me, and Leah's constant encouragement for both herself and Abigail left me speechless. I finally managed out a "Sweet dreams," and watched her slowly walk out of the room and click off the lights. I closed my eyes and let out a soft sigh before sleep washed over me all at once.


	12. Chapter 12

I awoke slowly, groggily opening my eyes and moving my head over to avoid the gentle little sunbeam that was trying its best to share its cheer with me. At first I tried to go back to sleep, but a loud roaring sound made me sit up ever so carefully. I recognized the sound as Robin's chainsaw, as I heard it constantly when she was fixing my stable up for me. The sound came again and I tried my best to figure out why she would be doing something on my farm, especially on the spring dance morning. My legs protested, but started working after a little encouragement. I groaned and limped into the living room to see if I could see Robin and ask what was going on.

 **Stardust XII**

 **By: Satashi**

When I made it into my living room I felt weak again, and my stomach was cramping as if I hadn't eaten anything in days. The sound of wood being shredded came again and I realized then that it was _inside_ my house. I had a small panic attack at what was going on, but everything came together when I saw my guests on the couch. They were both on my couch, heads on opposite sides and sharing a blanket over them both. Abigail had her pillow over her head and looked like a death grip on it, even in her sleep. Leah looked absolutely comfortable. A light smile was on her sleeping face, mouth slightly open. A long line of drool was coming from the corner of her mouth, down her neck, to a wet spot on her clothes. I realized then that the ear splitting sound was her snores at that moment.

I wanted to record it, or something along those lines, but it appeared as if Abigail was having a hard enough time sleeping, as she noticed me walking around and moved her pillow. A few moments passed as she untangled her legs from Leah's and got off the couch to walk to me. Her shoulder was offered at once and I was helped over into the kitchen, where she pulled a chair over for me to sit on. "Something that small shouldn't be capable of making those sounds," she greeted me with bloodshot eyes.

"I think I said the same thing," I replied. My voice was rough and horse.

"You poor thing… Water?" I nodded and she went about to get me a glass. After filling it up I noticed the snores had stopped . Leah had woken up and came in search of us, a dazed expression on her face. "Morning." Abigail greeted.

Leah looked at us like she couldn't quite see and let out a face splitting yawn accompanied by a sound that was rather adorable. "Morning… What time is it?"

"A little after six," I replied after gulping down the liquid. "I'm normally up at five, I feel so lazy today…"

"There shouldn't be a five in the morning…" Leah rubbed her eye with one hand before yawning again. "How did you sleep Abigail? Kim?"

"Like a rock," I answered easily.

"Horribly." Abigail looked at Leah with an odd mixture of annoyance and amusement. "Someone was snoring."

Instantly Leah flushed. "Oh… I've been told that I snore before. I'm sorry."

My stomach grumbled at me and I gave them both a sheepish grin. "I'm hungry. Would you two like anything to eat?"

Leah answered first. "You just sit right there. I'll make us something."

I looked out the window to my fields and bit my lip. Abigail cut off my train of thought before I could even form it. "You're not going outside. Period." She struck a small pose. "I'll do all the farm work for you today. Just let me know what to do."

I smiled at them both. "Okay, I won't argue. I still can barely stand, but… I want both of you to go to the festival today." I could tell they were both going to say something about that but I would have none of it. "Absolutely going. No matter what. I feel horrible not being able to go myself. I need one of you to apologize to Emily for me…"

"… Accepted." Leah finally agreed.

"…Fine." Abigail put a hand on her hip. "But only because you pouted."

With a smile, I stood up with their help. "I'm going to get dressed." I noticed Abigail about to say something but she held it back. It was probably a flirty comment, one of the things that I both loved and disliked about her. Loved because it made me feel a little more accepting of myself, but disliked because I knew she really did want to progress with me but I kept shooting her down in fear of it. I was sending her mixed signals and really needed to address that…

Leah turned to Abigail as I limped to the bedroom. "Okay, I'll have breakfast ready in… half an hour to an hour. I'll just yell out at you?"

"That'll work." Abigail moved over to the door with her. "I've helped her before. Just once, but I kind of have an idea what needs to be done? I'll water and look for weeds then eat breakfast. After that I'll go till some more. She has a lot of empty beds she was going to use in summer before she decided to just keep growing Spring crops." Her words changed from casual to concerned and even a little angry. "Ugh, this will both me for weeks."

"Do the best you can, We'll work it out. Kim learned her lesson, and from now on she'll do better."

"Yeah, I know… anyway, I'm off to work."

"I'll have a lovely meal cooked for you soon."

"…I kind of feel like we're married or something."

Leah chuckled at that. "Have a good day at work, Honey!"

Abigail snorted and giggled, walking out the door. "I'll be back soon, Darling!"

I came into the room while buttoning up my giant extra, extra large shirt that doubled as my pajamas for the day. "You two seem to be in good spirits."

The morning seemed to go by quickly for me. I was caught in a blur of talking to my friends and struggling to stay awake. Breakfast weighed heavily in my stomach and I was so full and content that it made me sleepy beyond words. Finally, after literally almost falling out of my chair, the two friends helped me back to my bed and laid me down. Leah gave me a bottle of water and Abigail put a baggy full of my granola mix next to it. I promised them I'd stay in bed as long as they had fun at the dance. They agreed and reluctantly left me to myself.

I felt as if I had just fallen asleep briefly when I awoke again. To my surprise it was already dark, but all my lights were on inside the house. I lightly opened my eyes again and saw Leah sitting across from me in a chair. She had a sketchbook propped up on an easel and had that _art mode_ look in her eyes. She was wearing different clothes now, a shirt that covered her chest but showed her stomach and a pair of short shorts that matched. I recalled her saying that she couldn't handle the heat very well at all, so that must be her summer attire.

When I thought about Abigail, I felt a little shift on the bed. Looking back, I could see Abigail in a light black spaghetti strap tank top and baggy purple pants that matched her hair. I noticed she was stroking my hair, sitting behind me on the bed. I closed my eyes again and sighed out at the feeling. When I opened them again it was light once again. I was confused, but say up in bed anyway. The world didn't blur and I didn't feel sick or dizzy anymore. It was almost as if something had been smoldering inside of me and somewhere in the night had ignited once more. Now I had two feelings in my body, and it was threatening to consume my whole. First, I was going to go to the bathroom, and then I was going to devour everything in my kitchen.

By the time I made it into dining room I was smelling fish. Leah was wearing an apron, now dressed in some of her more casual clothes. She noticed me and smiled, poking whatever was in her skillet with a spatula. "Hey, look who's up! How do you feel?"

"Starving," I said at once.

"I bet, you slept all day!"

I looked at the clock on my microwave. "It's only noon. Shouldn't you be at the dance?"

"That was yesterday," Leah teased me. "You slept through it all, all through the night, and half of today." She was finally able to set down her tools and walked over to me to look me over. "You certainly look better, sunburn notwithstanding." She lifted my chin a little and looked deep into my eyes. "There we go, I see the normal Kim in there again!"

I blushed lightly, but let her fuss over me. "You stayed all this time? Did Abigail stay as well?"

"Oh yes. Her dad was not pleased, but luckily Harvey said that she was needed to help me look after you. Everyone in town heard that you passed out. A few stopped by, left some cards for you on the table." she pointed and I turned to see a small stack of get well cards there. "Abigail worked your fields yesterday and this morning. I was going to call her in for lunch in just a moment. We really made ourselves at home, hope you don't mind."

"Not at all. I'm glad." I looked around, noticing some of Leah's art supplies on the table. There were wood carvings and sketch pads laid out, along with pictures of intricate designs. Beside all of that were Abigail's daggers and three backpacks. One I could tell was Abigail's, as it was black and purple. The other were probably Leah's clothes and art supplies. "Can I do anything to help?"

"Just call in Abigail for me? I'll set the table." Leah went back to her cooking and I did as I was asked. My friend came to my call and gave me a good look over once she got close enough. I would have teased her or made a joke about it, but I was way too hungry at the moment. Instead, I sat down to a plate full of things that all looked exceptionally well made. "I can't wait…" I mused before we all sat down together. I ate quickly, feeling my energy coming back with each helping. By the time I was done I had not only eaten my share, but got more, and then picked off Abigail's plate when she was done.

"Looks like she's all better." Leah joked at my appetite. "How are now that you have something in you?"

"Loads better." I took a long, deep breath to settle myself. "I feel as if I just had a switch turned back on inside of me."

Abigail propped her chin up on her palm and looked over at me, pleased. "That's your mana. It was burnt so low it was using your own body energy to keep itself going. Now that it is refilling on its own again, your body is recovering. All that sleep didn't hurt any either."

I felt amazing compared to what I had been. The only problem now was the awful sunburn that stung half my body. Unfortunately I had apparently passed out in a weird position, making my red tinted skin uneven and rather silly looking. If that was the worst of my problems then I think I was just fine. "Thank you two so much for all the help. I really can't express that enough." Before they could reply I heard the familiar sound of beeps and chirps from behind me. Turning, I saw several Junimo playing in my guest's backpacks. "Oh hey little guys!" I spoke to them, getting all their attention and having them run over to greet me again. "I thought you left me for a little bit…" I allowed them to jump all over me and even held a few on my palms and arms.

"See? Nut job." Abigail pointed at me and I realized that I must look really silly to anyone who couldn't see them.

"I think it's cute." Leah declared, holding back a laugh.

"Oh shush." Laughing, I put them down and stood up in a stretch. I feel like I need some air.

* * *

Once my friends were sure I would be okay, they reluctantly left to recover on my own. My house felt strangely empty now, despite most of the Junimo being indoors now to keep an eye on me. I felt the need to move around, so I felt to inspect my farm. It was still just fine, but I could tell that my crops were withering a bit around the edges. Before I would have tried to put some love into them to nurse them back to health, but now I knew better. I would have to harvest what I could, sell the average quality produce to anyone who would buy, rip everything up, and replant for summer. I was not looking forward to this in the least.

I continued to walk my farm, going past the southern entrance. Leah and Marnie's house was a little more down the path, but I chose instead to head to the west. The Cindersap forest felt like it was calling out to me for some reason. I headed over and felt rejuvenated in the shade of the trees. The ground was a lush green and the grass was almost soft under my feet because it was so thick. I took a long inhale of air and could swear I felt it run through my entire body.

"You're absorbing the energy of the forest." A voice made me jerk and turn to face Rasmodius. "You're a natural when it comes to receiving and using your energy, but you are one of the dumbest people I've ever met when it comes to using proper form."

"So sorry," I wasn't apologetic at all. "I didn't ask for this. Just a few months ago I was working in an air-conditioned cubical working text support for people who couldn't even turn on a computer. Now I'm in the valley raising crops and finding out I have magical powers. Call me a little inexperienced, I'm proud that I have managed to make a harvest at all."

"Forgive me, I have insulted you." The man stood next to me. "It is rare that I find someone with abilities. I expected someone of your innate abilities to have studied or been trained. I was upset to find out it was a fluke and you needed help."

I wasn't sure if he thought that was an apology or not but I let it slide. "So I have mana, I can use it, and I recharge how now?"

"Eating things that are affiliated with Nature's Spirit, meditating in a high energy zone, resting, or not using your powers for a few days. You can probably feel the energy here now." He motioned around himself. "I set up here because of the magical energy. Stardew Valley is full of it, and this forest is packed to the brim with it. I recommend coming here when you feel depleted. For now, my doors are always open to you, Farmer."

I was going to thank him, but a gust of wind made me move my hair out from my face. When I looked again, he was gone. I turned around in place a few times before shaking my head. I didn't want to deal with that right now so I sat on a tree stump. I took another long breath and exhaled slowly. I wasn't sure how long I enjoyed the shade of the trees, but by the time I heard a twig snapping underfoot I had felt more alive and full of energy than I had in a long, long time. "Oh, I'm sorry," A soft voice came up. "I didn't mean to startle you."

I looked at the short girl standing behind me with a turn of my head. She had on a yellow blouse and skirt paired with a classy pair of matching shoes. Her brown hair curled at the base of her neck and green eyes were very sparkly. "Oh, hi… Penny, right?"

Penny nodded and walked up to me. "We met once but haven't really come across each other much since."

"Farming takes a lot of time." I patted the stump next to me. "Want to have a seat? The breeze is nice and cool here." She hesitated a moment but nodded. Sitting by me, she closed her eyes and breathed in. "Feels good, doesn't it?"

"It does." Her tone was a little happier now. I wanted to get out of the house, I'm glad I came to such a nice place."

"Same here. Been a little out of it the past few days, this is my first time outside in a while."

"I was told you fainted; I'm sorry to hear that. You seem to be doing better now?"

"Oh, lots. I had some wonderful friends come take care of me." I leaned forward a bit and looked out over the peaceful woods. "I feel really good now, and it makes me happy."

Penny smiled hearing that. "It's always good to be happy."

"Mmhmm. What makes you happy, Penny?"

The woman thought about it. "I enjoy teaching the children. You know Pelican Town doesn't really have a school. We do have a wonderful library, but since we're an out branch of a larger city it's hard to send everyone a town over for their education. I took up the tutor job because I was a teacher for a few years after high school."

"Wow, really? I was seriously impressed with that. "You actually taught kids in a school? That's so cool."

Penny looked very pleased with herself at the compliment. "I did, for about three years. I substituted at first, then got hired as a new teacher under the care of an elderly one. The next year I was on my own."

"What grades?"

"Second, Third, and Fourth. I love younger children. When I see them I think of all the possibilities they have. One of them might rule a country one day, and it could have been me teaching them how to multiply and divide. It's just so great to be able to help them reach their goals and- oh, I'm sorry I seem to be ranting."

"It's ok!" I laughed merrily at her. "I needed a good positive outburst, it's contagious. Do you have any kids of your own?"

"Oh no, I haven't met anyone yet to grow old with."

"That's a shame, you're very pretty- if you don't mind my saying." The compliment made her blush and look away shyly. It looked as if she was even more shy than me, which was quite a feat in my opinion. "I'm sure you'll grab some handsome young man and settle down nicely in a big house with a white picket fence!"

"I would love that." Penny was practically beaming now. "And I could teach at a local school nearby and meet all of the parents and make so many friends!"

"Sounds wonderful! Much better than a dusty old farm."

"Oh farming is such a great way to live off the land! You grow things that feed people, I think that's superb! I wouldn't mind if my house was on a farm at all."

The words made me happy as well. "I wish I met you earlier, Penny, you're really nice to talk with!"

"Why thank you!" She was blushing, but eyes were shining. "You are too!" We both chuckled at our new friendship before looking back over at the animals scurrying around looking for food. "Maybe one day I'll get there."

"Just keep trying. I mean, I left a job in the city that paid my bills and kept me fed, but here I am now. Bumbling through my land and making mistakes. I'm learning a lot from it, actually. Just the other day I learned that I let my crops go for too long. The hot air is damaging them now and I was so busy tilling new plots that I didn't plant anything for summer yet…" I looked over at her in embarrassment. "I wish I had a teacher that knew about farming."

"I'm teaching the children in town about agriculture right now actually. The rain cycle, how plants grow, photosynthesis, and all that fun stuff. I'm not sure they're really enjoying it as much as other subjects, though. Technology is increasing really fast and our times are changing. It's hard to hold their attention with a book on things like plant cells when they could just as easily look at their phones for a video."

"Then why don't you show them something more fun?" I hopped off the tree stump and held my arms out. "I'm a farmer! I'm going to pull up my old crops soon and replant new ones! Why don't you bring them by with… like a microscope or something? You can show them the seeds and the dying plant cells and then… then you can come back in a month or two when they're all grown up and look at them again. You can even pick some and eat while you do it!"

"Really?" Penny stood as well and looked utterly ecstatic about the aspect of a field trip. "You'd let us get in your way just for a school lesson?"

"Hey, I wish I knew more than I currently do. Maybe you'll teach me something as well." The woman nodded at me to confirm. "Awesome! Here, let me give you my number. You can call or text to let me know when you'll come by and I'll have everything ready."

"Oh, I don't actually have a cell phone, just a house one…"

"No worries! Have a pen?" She actually had one tucked behind her ear and pulled it out for me. "Look at you, all prepared." I wrote my number and name down on her hand and drew a little smiley face next to it. "There we go!"

"Thanks!" Penny was still super happy. "I can't wait to tell them!"

"Looking forward to it."

"I'm going to run home and start planning it out. Thank you so much for this again."

"Sure thing!" I waved and watched her trot along out of the woodland area. "What an inspirational meeting," I spoke aloud, looking around at the trees again. After yet another long breath of air, I clenched my fist in determination. "Alright, I'm going to get my farm up and going like never before. You'll be proud of me yet, Grandpa!"

I found the energy to jog out of the trees and into the thinning woods, back on the way to my home. My horse Okami was near the entrance to my fields and gave me a ride back up to the house, where I entered with a happy shout to my friends. "I'm home!" The Junimo near me gave waves and noises in greeting. Two of them were dancing on my kitchen table, where I was the stack of get well cards from the villagers. Next to them was something new that caught my eye. There was a purple woven bracelet there with two feathers and some beads attached to it. As I picked it up, I saw a little note beside it as well, folded into the shape of a swan.

Unfolding the letter was a little challenging, as I didn't want to rip it nor actually mess up the pretty design. Inside of it was Abigail's handwriting. _Kim, Leah and I found these feathers by Marnie's farm and Leah thought it would be fun to make them into a bracelet. I chose the duck feather and she picked a chicken feather. We hope you like it! Abby/Leah_

I grinned to myself and put it over my wrist, where it fell nicely. Giving it a few flicks to be sure it wouldn't come off, I took my phone out and snapped a picture to send to them. Now with my new found preset, I sat down to read the best wishes of my community.


	13. Chapter 13

One thing about small villages was that there was a real sense of community. Pelican Town was no different, as they seemed to hold festivals pretty regularly. One such festival was happening tomorrow, and I had just found out about it today. Apparently once Summer was in full swing, everyone liked to go to the beach together for an annual luau as well as general fun in the sun. All my friends looked at me sheepishly when I gave them a blank look while in the Saloon this Friday night when they started talking about it. They had each all just assumed that someone else had told me. I groaned and leaned back in my chair, looking up at the ceiling.

 **Stardust XIII**

 **By: Satashi**

"It's not a big deal," Sam tried to comfort me. "You don't have to bring anything. Just show up and have fun."

"I don't even know where my bathing suit is," I complained at no one in particular. "And I've lost a lot of weight and toned up since last year as well. It might not even fit me anymore." I could tell Sam was thinking of a way to make me feel better so I gave him a smile as thanks.

"Can't you borrow one of the girl's other swimsuits?" He asked me anyway. I looked down at my chest and then over to Leah and Abigail. Sam followed my gaze and realized what I meant. "Oh! Sorry, not used to thinking about that."

He was really a sweet guy. A little eccentric sometimes, but still sweet.

Sebastian lit up a cigarette and took a long puff on it before speaking up. "There is normally a shop there that sells sunscreen and stuff. You can get a suit there. Won't have a wide selection, but if yours doesn't fit then that's an option. If not…" He shrugged. "Shorts and tee shirt. You're not missing this. If I have to go, you do too."

"You get a tan from your monitor," I teased him back. "Don't worry so much."

Abigail sat her cola down on the table and made a disgusted face. "I hope I don't get a tan… Makes my hair look really weird without my pale skin."

I could see that. Luckily my sunburn had already peeled away to leave a pretty nice base tan. Sadly though, since I was wearing a three-quarter sleeve shirt and my overalls, my arms, neck, and face were starting to show tan, but the rest of me was still pale. I hadn't worked in my new cooler clothes yet, which is another reason I didn't really like being informed of this last minute. I would look silly no matter what, and I knew it.

The rest of the night was a mixture of the girls trying to comfort me while the guys took to teasing me. It was a nice mix, though, and I really enjoyed the company. As I went to leave for the night, I made sure to go around and say hi to everyone who had came in after I had and stayed out in the main area. Pam, which I now knew was Penny's mother, looked totally wasted. Marnie was talking with Shane about possibly taking her home, but I volunteered to walk her myself. Their place was very close and I wanted to get to know everyone, even the town drunk. I think she was the one who actually drove me into the city the first time as well.

Pam looked at me with glazed eyes but a cheerful shout. "Hey kid! You taking this old coot back to her trailer!?"

"Seems so!" I greeted back, allowing her to sling an arm over my shoulder. "Whoa, can you even stand?"

"Kid, I can drink more in an hour than you did all night." She leaned against me but still managed to stroll alongside. "You're a good kid. I've seen you helping out everyone. Penny said she met you not too long ago too. Really excited about something."

"I offered her to come to my farm on a field trip with the kids."

"Bah." Pam scoffed off the idea. "She's too hung up on that. Barely pays anything, and once those two grow up more she'll be out of a job. Needs to focus on something secure. She'll end up better than me working the poles just to make ends meet before long!" I _really_ didn't want to picture Pam doing that. The idea alone made me gag. "Oh look at you kid, I was a hot thing back in the day! Had legs that wouldn't quit and a body that made men cry!"

"Okay, I think you're a little too drunk to continue this conversation." I tried to hurry the walk along without seeming too grossed out by her words or the rank breath she kept breathing on me.

"Maybe Penny could do better than her old Ma!" We made it to their run down trailer and Penny was already opening the door with a disapproving face. "Penny! We could go back to the club on the weekend! Your Ma could show you a thing or two about getting men!" The look on Penny's face was clearly embarrassed and shocked. "Don't be shy, they pay tons to see you shake it!" With that, Pam burped loudly. "Whoops! I know this feeling." She hurried past Penny and into the trailer to throw up. From the sounds coming from inside I wasn't sure if she made it to the bathroom or not.

Penny just looked to the side, face red and chest heaving as she tried to hold in whatever she was feeling. It was dark, but I could tell that her eyes were watering from even this distance. "Hey," I tried lamely. When she just swallowed and looked down in shame, I tried again. "I know she's drunk. You wouldn't-"

"It's okay." Penny turned and her voice broke. "Thank you, just… just please go."

I knew it wasn't okay, but at the same time, Penny didn't look like she wanted me there after that. I took the hint and reluctantly started to turn around. "I'll see you-"

"Please."

I stopped talking and turned, walking away without another word. I heard the trailer door close and then shouting from Pam. Swallowing, I kept going back to my own house.

* * *

I looked around the store on the beach thankfully when I arrived. They were already open, despite being so early in the morning. The beach was wonderfully big, and wasn't too terribly far from the town I was a little surprised that there wasn't more of a tourist scene from it. I did know another city was very close here, so maybe people just stayed over there instead.

As I looked around, I observed all the bathing suits. Mine didn't fit at all anymore, something that both pleased and upset me at the same time. I was happy to find the stomach area a lot less form fitting, but at the same time my hips had become more muscular along with my thighs. I was tone and defined thanks to my farm work and my complete overhaul of eating habits, but my self-consciousness was over the top. This made me hesitant to try on anything, despite quite a few of them looking rather cute.

"Hey there," a voice called out smoothly. I didn't recognize it so I kept looking at the piece in front of me. "Hey, you, pony tail." This made me look up and over at a muscular man in red and white swimming trunks. He had short messy hair and green eyes, along with a nice tan.

"Hello?" I ventured, confused.

"Why are you in the one piece section? The bikinis are over there." He pointed. "I could tell you what I think about them when you try them on."

I instantly didn't like him. "No thank you."

"Hey, come on." He followed me to another hanger section. "I'm Alex, by the way."

"Didn't ask." I denied him, turning to look at another set.

"Did I come on too strong? Let me try again." He moved in front of me. "Hi, I'm Alex." He held out his hand. "Nice to meet you."

Sighing, I gave in and shook his hand. "Hi Alex, I'm Kim."

Alex flashed me a pearly white smile that I chose to ignore. "So, Kim, looking for a new bikini?"

"A one piece. I don't wear bikinis."

"Why not? You got some rocking legs. I bet your stomach looks great too."

I crossed my arms at him. "I gave you a second chance, you're not getting a third."

"Hey, sorry, how about I make it up to you? I'll buy your suit. In return give me a shot for ten minutes." He held out his arms by his sides. "What do you say? Can't lose."

Briefly I was torn between taking him up on the offer and walking away. I was extremely short on cash thanks to my recent medical bill as well as a repair fee on fixing my air conditioner, paired with being stupid on my crops. An extra chunk of gold in my pockets would really be nice right now. However, I didn't like that he was trying to buy me. "I don't need someone to buy my suit. I have a very stable job."

"Then how about I just help you pick? I respect a good hard working woman. Work with me here, I'm trying, you know?"

I caved in again. "Okay. Okay, pick something. I won't promise I'll get it."

"But you'll try it on?"

A sigh. "Yes. I'll try it on."

Alex gave a sweeping motion with his hands. "My lady, right this way." He lead me over to the bikinis and I instantly felt nervous about my promise. As I figured, he picked up… something that looked like floss… and held it to my front. "You could pull this off _easy_!"

"I.. I don't think so."

"Oh come onnnnn, I wouldn't pick something that wouldn't work! Have some confidence! You look _great_!"

"B-but I don't look great."

"You kidding?" He put the bikini in my hands and began guiding me to the dressing room. "Why would I even try talking to you if you weren't attractive? Show off what you got!"

I blushed hard. "But it's… revealing…"

"Hey, you're hot, I won't lie."

"R-really?" I didn't get the same feeling hearing this from him as I did Abigail when she tried to flirt with me.

"Really! Come on, you promised, I get to pick one."

I looked down a moment and then to the dressing room. "O-okay, I did promise… But I won't' buy it if I don't like it, okay?"

"Right on!" Alex grinned and stood in front of the door while I went in.

I wiggled out of my clothes quickly, feeling a little exposed knowing someone was waiting just outside the door. The bikini was pulled up and tied on both sides. The top was fiddled with for several seconds as I tried to figure it out before I tied it around my breasts and around my neck. Adjusting it, I looked at myself in the mirror. I _did_ have a wonderfully tone stomach, but my bust was… "I don't know…" I finally spoke up nervously. "It… it doesn't cover much."

"You're used to one pieces, of course it doesn't cover as much." Alex encouraged me. Slowly I opened the door and peeked out of it. "Come on," he beckoned me. As I stepped out, he whistled. "Whoa-ho! Look at you!" I blushed hard at his shout. "Come on, give me a turn!"

I reluctantly turned and heard a wolf whistle. "Wow, you're doing something right!" The compliment made me feel funny. "Dang girl, work it." I gave a little pose and he clapped. "That's the spirit! Come on, let me buy it for you."

"I-I don't know." I felt my shyness coming back up. "I really feel exposed." I covered my chest lightly with one arm. "Like I'll bounce right out of it…"

"That would be a good thing!" Alex replied easily. "You look great, show them off."

"N-no!" I took a step back. "That's _not_ a good thing." I quickly tried to come up with something else to say. "I… I have a girl that wouldn't approve."

"Whoa, a lesbian? What are the odds I could get in on some of that action?"

I fumed at him. "Zero!" I instantly had enough and flung my arm out to slap him. Instead of smacking his face, he caught my wrist and was now glaring. "Let go you creep." I hissed before thinking.

"HEY!" A new voice came up, making us both look towards someone behind the register. "Leave the girl alone or I'll call security!"

"Bah, like I'd go for a flat chested chick anyway." Alex let go of me and walked off, leaving me standing there.

"You okay, miss?" The shop owner asked me.

"N-no… I mean… Yeah… I just… need a moment." I went into the dressing room quickly and closed the door. Sinking down to the floor, I hugged my knees and rested my forehead on them. _'Stupid._ ' I belittled myself. ' _Letting yourself get fooled by that jerk… you're too good for that._ ' I sniffed and exhaled, trying to collect myself. Before I could think anything else, I heard a soft knock on the changing room door.

"Farm Girl? Was that you?" A voice came in that I recognized as Haley's.

"…Yeah, it's me."

"Hey, um, I heard the store owner yell and then you said you weren't okay and came in here… Um… You… need anything?"

She was trying, and I really appreciated that. "Just a bonk on the head for being so dumb." I reached up and pulled on the handle to the door. It popped open and Haley looked down at me. A small moment passed before she came in and closed the door behind herself. She sat next to me in the tiny room and stayed silent for a moment before reaching over and bonking me on the head. "Hehe, thanks."

"So… Can I help?" She was very awkward.

With a sigh, I retold the story as best I could. "To sum it up, a guy saw me looking at swimsuits, somehow talked me into putting on this string bikini, flirted with me and I think he thought I'd sleep with him or something, and I tried to slap him, got majorly denied, and had a small breakdown. Then you came."

"Wow, what a creep." Haley looked disgusted. "You should know better than to fall for pickup lines if you have a bad feeling about it, Farm Girl."

"I know, I just… I dunno. Felt nice getting a compliment from a stranger. Just wish he didn't turn out to be a slime ball." I looked down at my outfit. "Look at what he talked me into."

Haley smiled. "That's not you at all. How about I get you something?"

"Yes, please." She stood up and left me in there for quite some time before coming back. She handed me a single outfit with a knowing look. "Just one?"

"That's what you need. I know." Haley winked. "I know my clothes."

I smiled a thanks and closed the door to change once more. I hastily changed into the new, one piece swimsuit and looked over myself in the mirror. It was white with yellow triangles curved down where my hips were, making them appear a little slimmer. The top was accented around my chest and was padded ever so slightly to give me the appearance of looking a little more full. I spun around and looked at my butt, which was lifted a little from the tight material. "It looks great!" I exclaimed happily. "How did you know?"

"I told you, I know clothes." Haley replied easily enough. As I walked out, she gave an approving nod. A quick circle was made and she put her hands on her hips. "Besides your Yoba awful famer's tan, you look pretty good!"

"Nothing a little sun won't fix." I pulled the tag off and went to the cashier. After a quick purchase, I gathered my bag and walked with my friend out into the sun and back on the sand. "Thanks City Girl. You really cheered me up."

Haley looked pleased with herself. "You're welcome." We both heard our names being called and looked over at my friends walking on the beach. "You go have some fun, I need to check my camera gear."

"Going to take pictures?"

"Of course!" Haley gave me a smile. "It's what I'm good at." As Haley left I made my way over to a small group. I noticed Sebastian first, as he had on so much sun block that his skin looked white. He was sporting some simple purple baggy shorts and matching sandals. Sam was next to him in, to my horror and amusement, a red Speedo. The tight bikini style bottom worked for him, though, as he could strangely pull it off… Not that I _wanted_ him to pull it off.

Leah had on a green bikini with yellow flower designs on the sides. Her top was a simple match but she had the same kind of flower that was on her suit in her hair as well, paired with a clip on the end of her braid. She looked rather adorable, despite her age difference with Abigail being insanely noticeable when side by side. The last girl stole the show, wearing a black top that completely covered her breasts, but had a cutout in the shape of a cat face with whiskers to show off her cleavage. Her bottom had a pink paw print on it and from what I could recall from seeing the design, the back had little cat ears above her butt.

There was a third man with them, one that I haven't ever seen before. He had long flowing blonde hair, and a strong jaw line. He wore what looked like home sewn shorts and a half vest to keep some of the sun off his shoulders. Being tan was an understatement with him, as he looked like he actually lived on the beach. When the group made it to me he instantly stepped forward. "Hello there, Kim I assume? My lady Leah has told me all about you."

"Good things I hope?" To my surprise he took my hand and kissed it.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady. My name is Elliott." He gave me a smile that made me flush. Suddenly I felt like I should be standing up proper, or speak more clearly to match his… absolute charm that was radiating from him.

"L-likewise." I looked at Leah, who was grinning from ear to ear.

"I will get our spot ready," Elliott declared to me. "I made sure to pick the perfect spot for our gathering. Come, gentlemen, let us make way." The boys went with him and I instantly turned to Leah.

"I want him. I'm taking him home with me." I was shocked to see someone like that in this day and age. "Where did you _find_ him, and are there more?"

Leah was laughing at me but answered anyway. "He's been my bestie ever since I first came here. He saw me moving into that little cabin with my art supplies and instantly came to help. He carried everything for me and went on and on about how happy he was to see someone with a taste for the fine arts coming nearby. He shared his poetry with me and I painted some pictures of what he wrote. He bought my first painting, too!"

"Wow! That's so cool." I noticed that Abigail was looking a little uneasy and I instantly realized that I had been ignoring her. "Abby, you look amazing in that, by the way! I didn't think you would wear something so adorably cute and revealing! Wow that cleavage!"

"Th-thanks…" She shyly put a hand over the cutout.

"She lost a bet after you left the saloon last night," Leah joked at once. "So she's wearing it because of that."

"Don't _tell_ her that!" Abigail scolded.

"Abby?" She looked at me. "Could you meow for me? Just once? Please?"

The purple haired girl looked shocked, but reluctantly held up one hand to make a pawing motion. "Meow."

I squealed and hugged her. "I'm keeping this one too!"

Leah smiled at my joy and Abigail's embarrassment. "We can share. You look really good, by the way."

"Thank you." I twirled. "Haley found me and picked it out for me after I had a run in with some jerk who wouldn't take no for an answer."

"Typical beach bums." Abigail agreed.

I blinked. "Have you been hit on too?"

"What? Me? No… Not yet…" She crossed her arms. "Maybe they are scared because I'm an adventurer now."

"Or maybe it's the purple hair?" Leah pondered aloud.

"Hey, don't knock the purple hair." Abigail held up a finger. "My hair was the first thing I did to set myself apart."

"What color was it before?" I suddenly asked, realizing I never knew. She dyed her eyebrows as well and I never really thought about it.

Abigail talked on ahead and looked over her shoulder. "You'll just have to see some time."

"How can I see if you're always dying it?" She grinned and kept walking forward. "Meanie." I heard Leah snort a giggle beside me. "What?" She walked on ahead and I had to trot to keep up. The boys were already breaking out the cooler and passing out drinks when we arrived. Elliott had laid out some towels for us and a huge umbrella was stabbed into the sand. "So what does everyone do today?"

"Not much, just a community beach day." Sebastian sat in the shade and took out his phone, tapping on it at once. "I'm going to be so far behind on my programming…"

"Dude, relax." Sam plucked the phone from his hands and held it out of reach when he went for it. "You're in that room of yours all the time, you need some sun or you'll turn into a vampire."

"Not how it works, Sam." Sebastian tried again to get the phone but failed. "Ugh, fine. Just let me check me mail."

"Deal." Sam tossed him the device.

I looked around the beach a moment before spying a volleyball net and ball already set up. "Hey, could we play?"

"Don't see why not." Leah looked at the net. "I think that's always there?"

Elliott nodded at us gracefully. "Indeed it is."

"Then let's do it!" I ran out and picked up the ball. "Come on!" Leah joined me, along with Abigail. "Boys?"

"I'll burn." Sebastian protested. Sam pulled him up despite the protest and pulled him out. "Man, why me?"

"Because." Sam took to the other side along with his friend. "Elliott? You coming?"

The man bowed slightly to us. "I'm afraid I must decline, for I need to find the mayor and assist him with the festivities. But you enjoy. I shall return soon, my friends."

Leah waved at him and then looked over at me. "Isn't he the best?"

"He's like a dream!" I confirmed readily. "Oh man he'll make some woman very happy one day!" I noticed Abigail looking over at me and I rolled my eyes. "Don't worry, Abby, I'm not drooling."

Her eyes widened slightly. "I-I'm not worried about anything!"

"Hey girls!" Sam called out to us. "We get it, you guys like each other. Can you give us guys a break and give us some attention too?"

"Sorry!" Leah called over to them. "But we need one more… She looked around. "Anyone want to join us!?" Her shout caught the attention of a girl passing by. She had on a dark green bikini that looked like a type of wetsuit. It clung to her hips snugly, moving over a toned body with a small waist. Her top was the same kind of material that went around her breasts and up to her neck in a choker style clasp. A huge mass of hair went down her back, having to be held in two separate places by hair bands so it didn't go all over the place. "Hey, want to play?" Leah held up the ball.

"Never played before," the woman replied unsurely.

"Come on!" Sam motioned for her to join their side. "It'll be fun!"

"Well… okay!" She ran over to them. "Hi, I'm Molly."

"Welcome to the team, Molly! I'm Sam, that dude is Sebastian." He pointed across from them. "Over there we have the losers of the day, Abigail the Adventurer, Leah the artist, and Kim the farmer."

"Oh, I'm a farmer too!" Molly cheered over at me. "I run a farm the town over!"

"Nice!" I gave her a high five for being awesome. "We'll have to trade secret Parsnip secrets when we're done."

"Sure thing!"

The match started in our favor, as Abigail and I were in pretty good shape for running around a lot. Leah was pretty spot on with her hits, but was already panting by the fourth point. Me, being the klutz that I am, was struggling to not score against ourselves. Fortunately, Luck was on my side today, and I haven't tripped once in the game.

Sebastian was horrible at the game, but Sam seemed to be pretty good at it. Molly, for claiming to have never played, was shockingly accurate with her spikes. With the power she put into the downward motion, it was almost as if she had used a hoe all her life.

When it came to the end, we were behind a point on their serve. The three of us all exchanged nervous glances with each other before Sam finally served. Leah knocked it up for Abigail to return, only to have Sebastian lob it back. I was there to deny it entrance to our side but Sam was already there, tapping it up a bit for the newcomer to spike. I tried to jump again to stop it, but she popped it hard downward to outside. I luckily stopped it from touching the sand, but sadly for me, I used my face to do so.

As I fell onto my back I felt the sting in my nose and face at the same time as a few concerned gasps. I opened my eyes to see my friend's faces surrounding me, along with a freaked out Molly as well. Giving a smile, I felt the blood run out of my nose and onto my cheek. "I'm so sorry!" The farmer cried out, trying to help me up. "Lean your head back! No, wait, you're not supposed to do that, lean forward!"

"I'm good." I sniffed, and immediately regretted it as I had to spit blood. "Ew, gross!"

"Here," Leah came to me with a napkin. I held it to my nose and tried to laugh.

"Did the ball make it back to the other side?"

Sam was laughing at me with his eyes. "No, you totally lost."

Molly looked really apologetic at me. "I'm really sorry, I didn't think I would hit it that hard."

"You kidding, I bet you could till an entire field with that power."

Sebastian looked relieved. "Farmer's fine." He stood and started walking back to the umbrella. "I'm going to sit before I cook even more."

Our group went over to the shade and I sat down with my new friend to drink some soda together while my nose bled out. "So," I began. "You're a famer too?"

"Yup!" She looked at me happily. "On my fifth year now. I used to help my 'pa out back when I was younger. When he retired he asked if anyone wanted his old farm before he sold it. I decided, hey why not? It gave him a good life, why not me? How about you? Been at it long?"

"Five months?" I guessed. "I really screwed up and didn't replant anything for summer till just recently. I thought my first crops would last."

Molly looked at me a moment to see if I was joking. "Whoa, you really fumbled that one!"

"Tell me about it. Now I'm screwed with money."

"Not totally. I know some tricks that could help." Molly held up her fist in a triumphant pose. "I'll let you know some tips as an apology for smashing your nose in."

"Thank you… I think?" I laughed at her.

Sam touched a cold cola to Abigail and Leah's cheeks, making them both shriek before grabbing them. As he sat, he propped an arm up onto a bent knee. "Kim's really starting to fit in and make friends huh?"

Abigail popped her cola and took a long drink from it. "I'm glad. For a while it was just us, and I'm pretty sure it gets lonely on that huge farm of hers. Lately she's really been becoming part of the community."

The braided girl nodded. "Rough start and some trying times, but all in all she's doing a great job."

"Besides that whole not planting a summer crop and passing out twice thing." Sebastian spoke idly while looking at his phone. When the group went silent he looked up. "What? Just being realistic, I like the girl just as much as anyway. Doesn't mean that she's doing a bang up job. I was thinking of printing out some farmer help FAQs for her but never actually did it."

Leah sighed. "Sebastian's typical social awkwardness. The group chuckled at his expense, much to his displeasure.

"And that should help you get back on your feet before too long," Molly finished up. "If you ever need anything, just swing by my farm or give me a call. I was new once too." She moved some of her messy hair from her face and smiled. Her freckles were really visible without the hair covering them and I briefly wondered if I would get them from being out in the sun as much as I am.

"Thanks, for real." I looked down at the bloody towel in my hand and moved it to a clean spot to check if it was steal bleeding. "Couldn't ask to be busted up by anyone nicer."

"Ah haha… Sorry again." She bonked herself on the head and stuck out her tongue playfully. "I sometimes mess up."

"Mess up anytime you want if it means me getting back on track." I joked playfully, getting a laugh. I was about to say something else but her name was called out by a small group not far off. "Oh, I think your friends are here."

"Fans. Having a meet up." She stood up and dusted the sand off her butt. "I recently hit a milestone and thought it'd be fun to meet some of them." Before I could ask she gave a little wave. "You have my number, call me anytime you need help!" With that she ran off to the group.

I looked over at the group. "Did I just meet a celebrity?" They shrugged. "That would be cool."

"Oh my!" We turned to see Elliott looking at me in shock. "My lady, whatever happened?" He knelt down to me and looked at my nose. "Here, let me assist you," he took a napkin and handed it to me to swap out and gently used his fingers to make me lean forward a little more. "Head tilted, breath as normally as you can. Let it drip out so it doesn't cause an infection in your sinus cavities. Would my lady like anything to drink?"

"I have some soda." I replied happily. "Thank you though." He nodded at me and looked over at Leah. "I read your letter about a painting you have recently completed. I must say I was delighted to hear so, but have been terribly busy with my novel. Might I impose upon you soon to view it?"

"Of course, any time. I'd love to read what you have up till now as well? We can do an art trade off!"

"Marvelous idea!"

"Book?" I inquired curiously. "You write?"

"It is my dream to become a published author. It is very taxing, but everyone struggles with the pursuit of happiness."

"Tell me about it," Leah muttered. "My sales went up after the farmer's market, but crashed shortly after."

"Maybe you should have that art show. Like announce it online and stuff." My words made her look nervous. "Come on, won't be that bad. You've already thought about it before right?"

Sam nodded with me. "Yeah, I'd come!"

"As would I, My lady."

Sebastian leaned forward so he could look at her. "I could hit up all the forums and post the place and date."

"You guys…" Leah looked over at Abigail, who gave her a thumbs up. "M-maybe I will!"

"Good job!" I nudge her, getting a real happy smile

As the day progressed more and more people from the town came out. Gus from the Saloon even brought a huge truck along with him that housed several amazing grills. He began cooking for everyone with the help of a few of the townspeople. The smell was amazing and I began to really want something to nibble on. The food wouldn't be ready for at least another two hours though, and I didn't think I could wait that long.

Luckily for me, there was a food stand not too far away and I told myself that getting a snow cone with some cream wouldn't be bad enough to spoil my dinner. I got some money from my purse and after asking if anyone else wanted one, made my way over. Haley was actually at the end of the line when I arrived and I tapped her on the shoulder before moving to her other side. She did a complete loop before finally finding me and giving one of her classic annoyed looks ."Very funny, Farm Girl."

"I know I am," I bumped her hip to nudge her up the line when they stepped forward. "Are you having fun today?"

"I am. I've taken lots of pictures." She showed me the camera that was hanging from her neck.

"Have you played any?" I pondered, admiring the camera's look. It probably cost more than what I spent on food for a month.

"No, I've been working. I want to enter my photographs in a contest for the summer." Her bikini wasn't really good for playing anyway. It was a solid white, riding high on her butt but with a semi see-through sash to keep it classy. Her top was revealing and went up and behind her neck instead of over her shoulders. It really made her hair stand out more. She would be extremely pretty, if not for her dismissive attitude.

"Do you develop your pictures yourself?"I pondered as we stepped up in line again.

"I would like to, but I don't have a dark room. My parents don't want to add onto the house, though, since they're going to sell it and buy another one in a few years. I've seen things on changing a closet into one, but I have too many clothes."

"Do you need that many?" I ventured out. "Maybe you could donate some and buy a standing dresser or something like that to store them in. Then you could use your closet."

"I don't know, donating clothes seems kind of weird. I mean, I have really high quality name brand things. What would someone want with those if they couldn't afford things to match it?"

She was being extremely rude, but the _tone_ of her voice made me believe it was an honest question that she really wanted an answer to. "Haley, sometimes people just can't afford anything. Giving them one of your high name brand shirts would probably make them cherish it a lot. They would pass it down to their little sister so they could wear it as well, and they would feel so good."

"Over a shirt?" She looked skeptical.

I knew she was rich, but this was ridiculous. "Haven't your parents donated before?"

"I dunno." She shrugged. "Haven't seen them in, like, three years. They're traveling the world together."

"How old are you again?"

"Seventeen."

I bit my lip. No wonder she was the way she was. If her parents left her at that early of an age, and no telling how much time they spent with her before then… Maybe they just showered her in gifts and money to make up for the fact they were really bad parents. "You should." I sated before I could stop myself. She looked at me and I had to commit. "Build it. The dark room. Build it yourself, in your closet, because you want it. Don't buy things just to make it easy or whatever, do it just like your book says. I can… help you get wood, or Robin can, or something. I dunno, but do it all yourself."

"Why? I can just pay someone to do it."

"Because it's _your_ passion. Just do this one thing for yourself, make it with your own hands."

Haley looked at me oddly but agreed despite clearly doubting me. "Okay Farm Girl, if I do this hard work for you, can you do something for me?"

"What?"

"Let me take more photographs at your farm. I want to catch it as it grows."

She did have passion, and she had a photographer's desire to capture things. She was just… underdeveloped. "I accept, City Girl." I shook her hand. "I'll even let you ride my horse whenever you want." That made her lips turn up before she recomposed herself.

"I wouldn't mind that." She replied airily, as if she didn't care. I saw her smile though. There was a girl under that make up and snobby, rich attitude that needed to be set free. Before I could continue, she started placing her order. I waited behind her, but to my surprise, she finished her snow cone with a "And whatever this girl here wants as well." Her finger pointed at me.

"Wha? I mean, um, I'd like a cherry with the sweetened condensed milk please."

"Condensed milk? In a snow cone?"

"It's wonderful!" I insisted with a nod. "You just don't know." Our treats were completed and Haley bought for me. "Thank you so much for the snack." I bumped my cup against hers, startling her slightly. "Oh come on, you've toasted before."

"Only champagne."

"Then toast to the snow cone gods." I held my cup forward again. "Come on, dink it!"

Haley looked rather embarrassed, but tapped hers to mine anyway. "So childish."

"But fun!" I pointed at my group. "Want to hang out with us? At least until you're done with your shaved ice."

"…Sure, why not?" She looked pleased at the turn of events that took place. "I'd like to."

"Awesome!" I took a bite of my cream splashed cherry treat and shivered in delight. "Yum!"

The blonde next to me gave an actual giggle at me. "It's good you're having a good day. I was worried for a bit that experience this morning would have ruined it for you."

"Thanks for caring, but I'm good now. One jerk can't take me down for long. Just have to ignore them and keep going. Some guys just don't like taking no for an answer. One of the reasons I started liking girls."

"Hey, you didn't mention anything about… you know… to anyone, right?"

"Huh…? Oh! Of course not! I would never!" I took a bite of my snow cone and spoke around the spoon. "How's that going for you?"

"I don't know… Not really anyone to experiment with, and besides I'm still dating someone now so I wouldn't if I could."

"Oh you are!?"

She looked at me sideways. "Why do you say it like that?"

"No reason!" I shook my free hand frantically. "I just didn't think you'd find someone who was as…uhm… refined as you?"

"Stop while you're behind." She pouted slightly. "But he's not really… good. I feel like he's using me sometimes…"

"Then why stay with him?"

"I don't know," she answered easily enough. "Just… He gives me attention…"

"Hey, Haley," I stopped her before we got within hearing distance of our friends. "Don't settle for that. I don't know him or you really, or your relationship, but never settle for attention only. You're better than that. Maybe that's why you asked me what you did?"

The blonde looked down. "Maybe… thinking someone softer would… maybe care for me a little more."

I debated it a moment, but put my hand on her shoulder. "Do what your heart says. Don't go for status, or what people think you should do. Just trust your heart."

"…My heart says he doesn't care about me…"

"Then chin up." I moved her head to look up more. "And you do what you need to do." She gave me a nod after a few moments and we continued on. "I just hope he isn't as big of a jerk as that Alex guy I met earlier."

Haley stopped walking and looked at me in shock. " _Seriously!?_ "

* * *

It had been a long, long day. I felt very full, more than a little sun burnt, and very happy. As I got out of Robin's truck and thanked her again for the ride home, I shouldered my bag and walked the last little bit in the setting sunlight to my house. About halfway there, I noticed someone sitting on my porch. When I got closer they stood and waited for me. I realized it was Penny, and she looked rather fretful. "Hey?"

"Kim, about what my mother said yesterday." She began at once. "I wouldn't, I mean I didn't… I would never-"

"Hey, whoa." I held up my hands defensively. "I never thought you did."

"Just… If anyone heard or thought that, or if it got around, I would lose any respect as a teacher and would never get a job with children again…"

"Hey, I didn't and wouldn't ever say anything like that. She was drunk and was just ranting on and on. I didn't think anymore on that. Promise."

Penny adjusted her blouse and kept her eyes down. "I'm sorry, I just had to make sure. Mother just… Doesn't think sometimes."

I really started getting a bad feeling about this. "Okay, I understand."

"She's nice when she's sober, but when she drinks she just… kind of says things…" She finally looked up at me and I could see the sadness in her eyes. "So please don't listen to her when she's like that. I would never disrespect myself like that."

"Hey, Penny, for real, it's ok. I can tell you're a good person." The words made her smile a little. "A great person. Someone who wants the best for the children. I like that, and am still waiting on you to come by with them."

"Really? I still can?"

"Of course!" The defeated look on her started to break away. "Maybe you could even teach me a thing or two about farming, I bet you're smart enough."

This seemed to do it. "Okay. I'll be by on Friday? Say around noon?"

"Friday at noon, it's a field trip."

"A field trip." She giggled a little at that. "I better go home now, before mother gets mad." Her cheerfulness was starting to fade a little.

"Hey, Penny?" She stopped to look over at me again. "Let me show you something." I brought her over to the side of my house where some Poppy flowers were just starting to grow. "See these?"

"Poppies," She replied at once. "My favorite flower, actually."

I grinned. "Watch." I moved my hand over to one and concentrated. A small wisp of green left my fingertips and illuminated the area around the flower softly. I heard Penny gasp but kept my focus on the task. A single poppy was growing steadily, budding and blooming almost at the same time. "Phew," I exhaled and the green mist stopped. The soft glow faded out and I gently plucked the now fully grown flower. "Here." I handed it to her and she took it carefully, eyes still wide with wonder. "Not many people know I can." I held a finger to my lips. "I keep secrets like this very well, and I trust you with it. Don't tell anyone, okay?"

"I-I won't. I promise." She was still in awe.

"Great. In return, I'll keep any secret you tell me as well. So if you ever need someone to talk to about anything, you have a friend here."

Penny didn't say anything for a while, but then wiped one of her eyes and smiled brightly at me. "Thank you."


	14. Chapter 14

As the sun beat down on me, I struggled to keep going with my crops. They weren't growing as fast as I'd like, but I was still a little scared to infuse my mana the way I had been doing. Instead, as soon as I started to feel a little tingle of drain, I would stop. Of course this still helped me grow faster than the average farmer, but getting such a late start was really taking its toll. It already took most of my morning to water everything that needed it, and the majority of the afternoon making sure there were no weeds or any insects that could harm them. The rest of the day was generally spent tilling new crop plots, or meditating in the woods to regain some of my spent energy. Speaking of, my special crops were looking rather nice now. This made me happy, especially since someone was coming onto my farm to ask about them.

 **Stardust XIV**

 **By: Satashi**

"Afternoon!" Leah called out to me as she got within speaking distance. "You look amazing."

I was wearing some of my new clothes, ones I didn't want anyone else to see me in. Leah was a little different, though. She has seen me in much less, and her eye for art made it so much easier to open up to. "Thanks!" I accepted the compliment and braced myself up on my hoe, panting slightly. "What brings you all the way out here?"

"To see you nice and sweaty, as well as request some chilies for dinner tonight." Leah rocked on her heels and eyed me, making no effort to hide the fact she was enjoying it. "So is my night going to be hot and spicy or…?"

I coughed and blushed, looking away and getting giggled at. "I do have some peppers for you over here." I lead her over to my special plot and knelt down. "Here, these are ready to be picked."

Leah knelt down beside me, really close. She bumped me on purpose and laughed with her eyes before observing my produce. "Oooh, these look great. Have you been doing your little hocus pocus magic thing on them?"

"Yeah, these get a little mana fed to them every day. The rest gets cycled so I don't have another fainting spell like before. I could probably go a lot farther than I am, but I want to keep track of how it makes me feel before I really cut loose. But what's for dinner?"

"Spicy Thai coconut curry. I thought I'd try something new and exciting!" Her slender fingers plucked a few of my peppers and she put them in the backpack she let fall from her shoulder. "Oh, look at that! I have all the ingredients here with me. Would you like me to cook dinner for you?"

"Smooth."

"Thank you." She bit her bottom lip while waiting for a reply.

I _really_ wanted something filling tonight after a hard day of tilling, and I knew that Leah's dish wouldn't have any meat in it. Despite this, the inquisitive look I was getting, along with the adorable fact that she planned all this made it so I couldn't say no. "I'd love for you too."

"Great!" She stood up and dusted off her knees. "You normally eat at five, right? I have just enough time to get it ready for you if I start now. May I use your kitchen?"

"It would be hard for you if I said no, wouldn't it?" She popped me on my arm and jogged over to my house, doing a small spin along the way to wave at me along her way. I gave a content sigh, pleased at not having to cook now at least. Briefly I debated heading in already, but decided to finish my current task beforehand. I only needed a little time to finish this plot, and I wanted to plant before the predicted rain.

To stress the point, I heard a loud roar of thunder over head. Redoubling my efforts, I went back to work. My hoe worked fast and steady, along with my mixing of fertilizer and seeds. Normally I would have left the soil loose and airy, but it was already starting to sprinkle on me so I packed the dirt as best I could to make sure everything I just planted wasn't washed away.

I could smell the rain as it fell. I inhaled that damp, thick scent as I worked, frantically trying to finish on time. As lightning struck somewhere close, I decided to call it quits before I got electrocuted. Jogging over to my shed, I put my tools up and made sure none of them could get wet. I mentally scolded myself for not getting Robin to update the shed yet, but my money was starting to dwindle. I needed more crops and another farmer's market some kind of bad. I briefly wondered if the girl I met on the beach a while ago would be there. I made a mental note to send her a text at one point to thank her for the advice on my farm. I didn't even know to plant those crops, and was pleased at how fast they were growing.

When I made it to my house, the storm had decided to let loose with everything it had. I just managed to make it in while only being slightly wet. "Dodged that bullet," I greeted her while looking out the window. "It's supposed to storm some kind of bad."

"So I heard," Leah mused while paying most of her attention on her phone that held the recipe on it. "This is taking a bit longer than I thought, I'm sorry…"

"No worries. I have time for a shower?"

"Depends, am I joining you?" Leah gave me an over exaggerated wink. "Yeah, you have time, but don't stay too long, okay?"

"You got it." I helped a Junimo off the back of the couch to the floor and he followed me to my bedroom. I closed the door and began stripping, careful not to toss my dirty clothes on any of my house mates. After looking over at my desk I took a moment to observe the framed drawing Leah did while I was on my mana burn sickness. It was me laying in bed with Abigail behind me, hand in my hair to stroke my head. I smiled fondly at that and placed it back down so I could wrap a towel around myself and head over to the bathroom.

I saw Leah look over at me as I went to the bathroom and she gave me a chuckle. "Shave those legs!"

"I wear overalls, who cares?" I challenged back playfully.

"I can get the scythe if you need it!" Leah's voice made it to me just as I closed the door.

I dropped the towel and looked at my legs. Maybe they _were_ a bit over due… I made it a quick priority and groaned as my razor was slightly dull. Had I left all my femininity back in the city along with my makeup, nail polish, and earring? Deciding to do a fast makeover, I completed the boring tasks of my legs, under my arms, and doing my hair. I made extra sure to scrub myself as well as possible, and when I got out I quickly dried my hair and brushed it. I decided to leave it down for now, and kept moving the brush through it, shaking my hair dryer to try and remove the inward wave where my scrunchie normally was.

I gave myself one good look in the mirror and a dash of perfume before getting dressed in my cow print white and black pajamas. Leah was almost ready for me in the kitchen and I stood next to her happily to watch her finish up the meal. She sniffed a few times before turning to me and beaming at my appearance. "Your hair is so _long_!" She realized. I turned for her and she gave a light whistle. "Good job!"

"Thank you," I mused happily. My hair went down to my butt when it was let down, but was probably nothing compared to Leah's. Her braid almost touched her butt as it was, and I was sure it'd go lower when undone. "Hey, how often do you re-do your hair?"

"Only when it gets loose. I have to scrub it pretty good in the shower to be sure no paint or anything gets in it, but I've gotten really fast at doing it up. Do you only ever ponytail yours?"

"It gets in the way of absolutely everything," I sighed out, crossing my arms. "Sometimes I want to lob it all off, but then I realize I would probably cry if I did that."

"Don't you dare." Leah went back to inspecting her food. "You know I love ponytails."

I suddenly realized something. "Hey, I saw some pictures of the Spring Dance when I went to see Emily a few days ago. You danced with Abby didn't you?"

"Sure did! She's a great dancer."

"And she had her hair in a ponytail!"

Leah was smiling. "I told her the day before that I really had a thing for them. I was really happy, she looked wonderful."

"I don't have to worry, do I?" I asked before stopping myself.

The braided girl laughed heartily at that. "No! Of course not!" She held up her hands to make a cup. "Bowls?" I pointed and she went to grab some. "You're the only one crushing on Abigail right now." Taking the bowls, she placed them on the counter so she could fill them up. "Though, if you're into that kind of thing, maybe I could be persuaded." She smiled coyly at me. "If she puts her hair up again, that is."

I felt my face burn when I caught her meaning. "I-I don't know who's worse, you or Abby."

"Abigail for sure." Leah looked proud. "I'm a mature lover, she's a horny teenager." I opened my mouth to protest that, but found myself really not being able to. "There's nothing wrong with that, though." she continued while we say at the table. "I was too when I was nineteen. Live and learn. Know I sure did."

"Did you have many lovers?" I asked while inspecting my dinner. Just as I expected, it was meat free. After trying a careful bite I realized I did love the flavor… minus the craving for chicken in it.

"Lovers? No. Boyfriends: a few. Girlfriends: One." She tried a bite as well and looked impressed with herself. "I did enjoy a good make out session, though. Yourself?"

"A few," I admitted to her. "In high school I fell for a boy. Ended up being used one night. Not my proudest moment." I took another bite and got hit by some heat I wasn't expecting. Giving a small cough, I forced it down and drank some milk. "Spicy!"

"I know, right!?" Leah looked pleased. "I'm so proud of myself for actually trying it! But anyway, go on?"

"You really want to know about the people I slept with?"

"Not so much, but I'd love to know more about your past. That includes your past interest as well, as long as you don't mind?"

"Not a whole lot to say, really. Uhm… I dated a girl when I first got out of school. She was nice but it didn't really go anywhere. She moved away after a few weeks of dating , which kind of sucked because she was a sweetie. After that I was single for a while then one guy at my office where I worked. Then someone I met at a pub, aaaaand…"

"Wow, get around much?" She teased me with a light laugh.

"Hey you asked!" I defended her tease. "I didn't sleep with _all_ of them!"

"I hope not!" We both laughed together and took a moment to calm down before I went on.

"But for real, not super proud of all of them, but you make mistakes in life. I'm a better person for it, and now I realize that not everyone who looks at you nice deserves your intimate thoughts. I think I was trying to make up for that high school disaster. Like prove that I was worth it and he made a mistake."

"And now?"

"He let something great pass by!" I looked proud of myself, I knew. "I'm awesome." My statement would have been a lot more impactful if I had not almost chocked on the curry again.

"You get that down, awesome girl."

"Thanks," I wheezed, tapping my chest. "It's good. It's _very_ good. I just can't handle hot things well."

"You should have told me!" She almost yelled at me. "I could have done something else!"

"No, this is fine. I want to eat what you wanted to cook for me." I gave her the best smile I could while my mouth was on fire. Was this what Abigail tasted when eating a ruby? I'd have to ask. "Okay, back to you." I motioned with my spoon. "How long you been single?"

"About two years. You?"

"Three years." A bite. "Favorite color? Oh wait, that's emerald green. Uhm-"

"Too late, that counts." Leah leaned forward. "Favorite hobby?"

"Collecting retro video games." I felt like we were speed dating, but it was way too much fun to stop now. "Favorite art medium of all time?"

"Carving wood. How do you relax?"

"I love napping." I tried to think. "Uhm… How do _you_ relax?"

"In the winter and fall I love to cuddle under a blanket and read a book while drinking wine."

"Oooh, Wine?" I raised an eyebrow. "Do you stay dressed under that blanket, or does it seduce you too?"

" Yes wine, and wouldn't you like to know?" Leah took a long drink of her milk and sighed happily. "That was fun."

"Hey, you have to answer!"

"I did. You asked if it was indeed wine, to which I said yes." Leah leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "I'm so full." A bright flash of lightning lit up the house, followed by crash of thunder that rattled my windows a bit.

"Oh wow, it's really coming down out there isn't it?"

"Extremely…" She pouted. "Not looking forward to walking home."

"You can stay here if you want."

"Will that be awkward?" She pondered, observing me. "You know I'm going to be cuddling you all night if you let me stay. Fair warning."

I blushed at her boldness. "I-I can't make you go home in that…"

"Accepted." She noticed I was done eating and stood up, taking my bowl.

"I can-"

"Shush, you've had a hard day at work." I watched Leah clean both bowls in my sink and then even go as far as putting the leftovers in a container and then into my fridge. "There we go. What should we do now?"

"I don't know…"

"What do you normally do?"

"Play some games, talk with my Junimo friends, head into town if I need things, watch some T.V. or so." I stood up and walked into the living room with her to sit on the couch.

"Let me watch you play a game." She nodded at the screen. "Any game you want."

"Okay…" I went over to my Atari and popped a game in. "Here, a Trek Wars game." I adjusted the switches on the ancient system and moved back to sit in front of Leah on the floor. She adjusted her legs on either side of me and ran her fingers through my hair. I tried to focus on the screen and play, but she was being exceedingly distracting.

"What's that bird flying around?" She asked curiously.

"That's not a bird, that's the ship I'm controlling." I moved the very crude space ship rendered in only a few pixels around on the map. "That's the Starship Falcon."

"And the camel down there?"

I bit back a comment about appreciating the classics. "That's an TA-TA walker. They're part of the Rebel force lead by Khan." I continued blasting little pixels out of the sky and then taking out the walker rather skillfully. "And level one complete! What do you think?"

Leah hummed. "I think you could have called this game _Bird Vs. Camel_ and no one would have argued with you."

I sighed. "To each their own."

She must have realized I wanted her to like it because her hands stopped moving for a moment. "I'm sorry, that was rude."

"No, it's okay… We can't all like old games like this. I'm just weird."

"I like weird." Her hands started working again and I started to play the second level. Mid way through blowing things up I realized that she was dividing my hair up into three parts. After a while she began braiding it, gently tugging every now and again to make sure it was tight. "How is your farm coming along?"

"A lot better thanks to that girl we met on the beach. She told me some great pointers on making some fast cash. I hate always being about the money, but just as soon as I thought I was getting ahead I had some weird bills come in. I really need to update this old place too. If not for Joja's wireless internet service then I wouldn't be able to do much of anything here."

"Big on the internet?" She pulled my hair a little more and adjusted the strands. I could tell she was taking her time on purpose, but I didn't mind.

"Not so much, but I do love having video whenever I want it. That's my only real need here. Well, that and some games. Not as much as Abigail, though."

"Nobody plays as much as Abigail." Leah laughed with me. "She's so bad at them, but you can really tell she has fun. I haven't seen anyone talk to the screen quite like she does."

"Hehe, I know, right?" I closed my eyes briefly to enjoy the sensation of my hair being played with. It was something that I haven't felt in years, and I wanted to savor a little of it. After what only seemed like a few minutes, I felt the end of my hair being twisted and a small tug and popping sound finished the job. Leah had tightly bonded the bottom so it couldn't come undone. Picking it up, I looked at it and realized she had placed her own clip at the end. As I looked back I saw her undoing her braid and letting it fall down. "Wow, I've _never_ seen you with your hair down before."

"Sounds familiar." Leah finally shook her head and let her orangish red hair fall around her. It was extremely wavy and a little frizzed from being out of its normal place, but she looked rather charming. "What do you think?" Despite not being straight, her hair was still pooled on the couch around her.

"You look weird, but a good kind of weird."

"I can say the same for you!" She poked my nose. The wind picked up then and the rain started pounding my house a lot harder. "Wow, will your crops be okay?"

"They'll have to be." I was a little worried, but surely one hard storm wouldn't do any damage. "So, movie?"

"Movie." Leah watched me get up and turn on the small box by my TV and I accessed my computer from it. "How in the world did you hook your laptop up to that ancient thing?"

"Wasn't easy. I had to call in a favor from one of my friends from the city. They know all sorts of tricks. Maybe one day I'll cave in and buy a new one." I let her pick a movie to watch and turned out the lights. When I plopped back down I instantly felt her scoot closer and lean against me. I froze at first, but her soft chuckle made me ease up a bit. "I told you I'd snuggle."

"S-so you did…" I felt her lean a bit more and I knew that motion. I had done it more than once when wanting someone to put their arm around me. I slowly did so and she made an approving sound.

"If I'm going too fast, just let me know."

"No, It's okay!" I said the words a little too fast, and was giggled at. I was shy by nature, but I had never been the one to put an arm around shoulders before. It wasn't bad, but a little awkward being in the different place. Even though we both seemed to enjoy it, I could only stay like that for so long before I just _had_ to move. She shifted along with me and somehow I found myself with my head in her lap. She stroked my hair with one hand and rubbed my arm with the other. It was soothing, and I felt the day's work start to creep up on me. I closed my eyes just for a moment and took a long breath of air.

"Wake up, silly girl." I heard my friend speak to me. She was gently tugging on my ear to get my attention.

"Not asleep." I yawned out my denial. "Just closed my eyes a moment." Despite this, I noticed the credits rolling. "Oh… Oops."

"Long day?"

"Not so much, but I wake up a little before the sunrise. This is actually about my bedtime."

"It's a little after nine!" Leah readily teased me. "I stay up till like one in the morning most nights."

"Yeah, and sleep in till noon."

"I wake when my art calls out to me." She said the words wistfully, clearly making fun of the over dramatic artists of the world. "But for real, I have a whacked out sleep schedule. I work most of the day, so my sleep comes whenever I need it."

"I can stay up a bit more." I sat up and rubbed my eyes.

"No, you can crash if you want. I can carve some wood or something."

"You have your stuff here?"

Leah nodded. "I was actually outside doing it earlier before I decided to come over. If I have my backpack, I generally have my sketchpad and wood carving tools. Never know when you'll get inspired."

I couldn't disagree with that. "True." I yawned again. "I really want to stay up with you."

"How about some pillow talk?" Leah stood up and offered both her hands down to me. I accepted them and was pulled to my feet. I felt the weight of my braid as it fell back and noticed her hair was clear to her thighs. I was a little jealous at first, but then realized she probably kept it in a braid so she could function normally. My hair was bad enough as it was. Maybe having it so long was more of a pain than anything else.

"Pillow talk?" I looked at her excited face. "Isn't that what you do after sex?"

"I thought we could skip that part for now and get right to it." She twirled me around and started pulling me toward my bedroom.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" I pondered aloud, getting a good blush.

"No, if I was going to seduce you, you'd be seduced by now." She gave me a cute wink. "I want to know more about you." Once we were in, she stopped and looked down at herself. "But I'm a little dusty from being outside all day, you don't need that in your bed."

"Oh _real_ smooth!" I laughed at her.

"I didn't mean it like that!" She actually bonked me on the head. " _Now_ who's the perv!?"

"Hehe, sorry sorry." I looked over her and thought about it a moment. "I have a nightshirt that could fit you. It's a super baggy one so should be just right for your height." I dug through my dresser and found it. "Here you go." I sat on the bed and faced the wall so she could change.

"You can peek a little, if you want." She told me coyly.

"I would prefer it be in a more romantic mood, if I were going to watch you undress." It was true. Right now I felt a little shy, but there was no build up for it. When she finally joined me on the bed I felt my cheeks color a little bit more. She _was_ on my bed, at night, wearing my clothes…

"I will admit, this is the first time I've been in bed before our third date." Leah's joke made me laugh.

"Okay, so, pillow talk." We sat facing each other. "What do you want to know?"

"Honestly? How are you holding up with us?"

I kind of felt that coming on. "It's weird. I feel kind of bad, like I'm stringing you two on."

"But you're not, you know that right?"

I looked down at my lap. "Sometimes I wonder… I'm not closer to finding an answer than I was a month ago. If anything, I keep falling for you both more…" I turned to meet her eyes. "Leah, I do really care for you… I just… I don't know… I care for Abby too… and it rips my heart when I think about having to pick between you two."

"I know," she reached to take both my hands again. "I've been thinking as well, and I know I've hinted at this, but I'll say it officially now, okay?" I gave a small nod for her to continue. "I really don't know if it's because of my last relationship, or if I'm just capable of understanding things like this, but… Kim, I'm ok with a poly relationship." I opened my mouth to deny the idea, but she interrupted me. "No, Kim, look at me." I did as she requested and she said it again, slower. "I _want_ that relationship." She squeezed my hands.

"I…I don't… really know what to say to that…" It was a relief, but at the same time terrifying. I knew people _could_ do it. Heck I knew a small group of guys back in the city who had such a complex poly relationship that I had to draw myself a chart to remember who was dating who. But the idea of being in one myself was… scary. Could I do it? Could I love two people? Is it possible for me to really, _truly_ , love two people?

"What are you thinking?" Her voice was worried.

"I-I don't know…" _My_ voice was shaking. "It's… such an easy solution, but…I don't know if I'm capable…I mean… It's scary. What if I can't? Like what if we do and I start to like you or her more? And Abby? What if she freaks out!?"

"Whoa, Kim, calm down." She moved her hands to my shoulders. "Hey, easy there. I'm sorry, I didn't know this would scare you like this. Let's just take a moment and breathe, okay?" I nodded and tried to take a deep breath. "There. That's better. Okay, let's take it slow. I know it's a huge thing to think about, but I wouldn't bring it up unless I thought it could be a thing."

Nodding, I gathered myself. "I can't give an answer right now… I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She tried to smile at me the best she could. "I'm sorry I freaked you out… how about we move onto something else? Give you time to digest?"

"Yes, please."

We stayed silent a while before she finally spoke up again. "I could just seduce you?"

"Not helping!" At the moment a large flash of lightning came and my lights flickered a second before turning off, casting us completely in the dark.

"You sure that's not sign?" Her voice was playful, and I took comfort in her ability to cheer me up.

"I don't know how long it will take to get power back on here. I think the power lines are all underground because my Grandpa never liked them… so that means it's in town. That's a plus."

"So now what? My phone is in the kitchen so I don't have any light."

"Mine's in the bathroom, so yeah…." Another awkward moment passed between us, broken only by a yawn.

"Sleep?" I nodded at her, fully expecting her to continue her thoughts until I realized she couldn't see me.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind. Are you able to sleep this early?"

"Don't really have a choice." She shifted on the bed. "Uhm… I'm not sure where your closet is or where the extra sheets are in the dark."

"You can stay with me," I said at once. "I'm not going to make us stumble all around trying to get you set up."

Leah moved her hand over my leg, searching for my hand to hold again. "You sure? Will it be okay?"

"We're just sleeping, not like it's anything bad. I'd share a bed with anyone really."

"You're lucky I'm not Abigail, she wouldn't let that joke pass."

I gave a soft chuckle at that, knowing it was true. "Sure wouldn't. But, well…" I moved and shifted to get under the covers, helping guide her along the way as well. "Let's get some sleep?"

"Officially requesting permission to snuggle."

"…Permission granted."


	15. Chapter 15

The ground was finally starting to dry enough to start working again after the few days of torrential downpour we had. My crops were still growing nicely, and I felt as if I would be ready for the upcoming farmer's market next weekend. It was also the day Penny was coming back for her return trip to my farm. The first fieldtrip was a very nice setup for learning and this time I would actually be there to answer questions and help teach. It wasn't my idea of fun, as I was quite nervous about it, but Penny really seemed to be looking forward to it. Helping out a friend was good enough reason for me to step out of my comfort zone, so I had been preparing myself for the last few days.

 **Stardust XV**

 **By: Satashi**

"Hello!" Penny called out to me, making me turn to look at the group. She was wearing a light yellow sundress with an extra large floppy sun hat. The kids were in casual clothing as well and were looking at me with a mixture of excitement and skepticism. "Thanks for having us again."

"Of course." I stood up completely and walked the rest of the way to meet them. "The first time was just planting some seeds and such, this time will be much more fun. You kids ready to see your plants?" They were pretty excited for that and were already running over to their little plot. Penny gave me a smile and I couldn't help but return it. "You look nice today," I complimented her. She beamed at me in thanks and we followed the kids together.

"It's so nice to see them so eager to learn," she told me contently. "Seeing them bursting with energy is one of the reasons I became a teacher in the first place." I didn't really have the heart to tell her that they were probably more excited to be missing a day of school than anything else, so I just nodded. "I really hope we aren't imposing too much?"

"Not at all." I had been wondering about her lately. I generally saw Pam at the saloon every Friday night when I visited, and she would sometimes talk about Penny. It was fairly obvious that they were completely different kinds of people, Pam being more… Well, Penny was kind and distinguished with good moral values. "Always happy to help a friend. Plus kids aren't that bad."

"Do you want children some day?" She asked curiously.

"What, me? Nah, I'd be a horrible parent." we reached them and I clapped my hands together once to get their attention. "Hey kiddos! You see how much your plants have grown?" They were ecstatically going on and on about how big they were. Truthfully I had been giving them more mana than the rest of my crops, a fact that didn't seem to slip by Penny. She was still smiling at me, and could almost hear a thank you coming from that look.

I let the kids mess with their plants for a while, talking briefly about what I knew from my experience as a farmer. Although it wasn't much, giving them a tactical view of what was going on to match their educational lesson would really help it stick in their heads. After I was done, I let Penny do her thing while I continued to work my fields.

After a few hours I came to check up on them and see how it was going. Penny had apparently just finished their school for the day and looked up at me from her spot sitting on a huge tablecloth she had laid out. "Would you terribly mind if they played a bit?"

"Of course not, it's pretty safe around here. Worst thing that could happen is them fall in the dirt." My words were like a recess bell for them, as Vincent and Jas ran off together at once. "Seems like they had enough learning for the day."

"It was a great day." Penny patted the place next to her and I sat down as well. "You were really informative today."

"Thanks, I've been practicing." I chuckled lightly. "How have things been with you lately?"

"Oh, you know, up and down." She looked out to make sure her students weren't going too far off. "Mom has been a little more grumpy than usual lately."

"I noticed that at the saloon."

"I don't like Friday nights there. Everyone in town seems to go drinking then." She sighed. "I can't let anyone think that I drink, it would make for a horrible role model for them."

"Drinking isn't bad, as long as you're responsible." I leaned forward a bit, stretching my back. "I'm not a huge fan of alcohol, but it's all in good fun. I can't remember the last time I was drunk… actually I can, my first Friday here. The guys just kept on buying me rounds. I had to get Marnie to take me home." Penny didn't really look like she found the story funny, so I changed as best I could. "Since then, I've been very responsible and kept any drinking to a low."

"Good for you," She did seem to mean that. "I'm sorry, I just don't like it… Mainly because I know what it does to people. My father drank a lot apparently. He left way early on. Didn't want to be trapped with a family."

"…That sucks." She looked a little sad recalling all of this. "Poor guy doesn't know what an amazing daughter he left. I pity him."

My friend cheered up at that. "If only Mom would cut back and see that as well." She made a face. "She brought up other jobs I could do. She doesn't really have a good sense of morals." I could guess what the jobs would have been. "She grew up in a bad place. I can't blame her because that's how she survived… But I'm different, you know? She just can't see things the way I can."

I knew Pam wasn't a bad person. She had anger issues, true, but she had a good heart. "She probably says things like that because those are the things that got her away from where she was. Maybe, in her messed up view, she is encouraging you to do the same thing."

"I never thought of it like that…" She looked down into her lap. "I wish she would see my teaching like that."

"Hang in there, it'll get better." I had no advice for her at the moment. "And if you ever need a place to escape to so you don't have to deal with her on Friday nights, you can always stay here."

"Really?" She looked at me. Her voice was almost pleading. "Can I stay here on Fridays sometimes?"

I nodded, unsure if I made the right call there. "I do go out in town on Friday nights, I enjoy being with my friends. But if you just want to hang out here so you don't have to deal with it, that's fine. I have extra sheets and pillows if you want to stay. I hear my couch is really comfortable actually!"

"I'll take you up on that offer, thank you." Penny looked very appreciative. "Hey, I made some sandwiches, would you like some?"

"I'd love one."

* * *

It was amazing how fast time flies when you're trying to beat a natural clock. The Famer's market was going to be in Pelican Town again tomorrow and I didn't really have a choice but to really put myself out there. My medical bills were pretty high, despite Harvey working with me to pay off over time. That, and I lost one harvest already thanks to my stupidity. Now, however, I was armed with knowledge from a skilled friend, capabilities to wield magic, and support from friends. Everything combined gave me enough determination and willpower to push myself safely to my limits.

As I pulled a red cabbage up, I couldn't help but grin at it. Standing, I looked over my field with one hand above my eyes to help block the early morning sun."It's going to be a long, long day." I spoke aloud to my Junimo friends.

"Not too long, I hope." A voice caught my attention and I turned to see Abigail walking from my house. "I thought you'd still be inside so took me a while to find you." I gave her a questioning look and she put her hands on her hips. "Oh, you thought you'd have to do all this yourself?" She stood next to me and looked down at the cabbages. "So we just rip them up?"

"Really?" I was almost speechless.

"Well…yeah?" She brushed her hair from her face and smiled. "I can't promise I won't get in the way, but I'll try my best."

I really wanted to hug her, but thought I'd save that for later. "You're the best, you know that?"

"Of course!" She gave me a triumphant pose. "Now, let's get to it!"

With my new farm hand, I started going at it with more vigor and determination. I let her work the wheel barrel and washing device, now upgraded to mark2. Still, I had to really push it to get everything ready. Hot peppers were nice and plentiful, but picking them by hand was time consuming to say the least. I also learned that capsaicin stays on your skin for quite some time, and if you wipe sweat from your eyes after picking them, you're going to have a bad time.

Aside from the stinging in my eyes, I managed to enjoy the harvest enough to completely forget about lunch. Again. Luckily, Abigail was there for me and managed to make me something to nibble while we both continued working. By the time night started approaching, I had managed to fill up the giant wooden baskets with freshly washed produce and load them into the truck that Gus had loaned me this time. "Man, what a day." I looked at our hard work proudly.

"Man, that sucked." Abigail leaned over and rested her hands on her knees. "I was thinking it would be a lot easier." I could tell she was wiped out, but also knew that we were some of the only people in the entire town who could go all day like that. Me because I did it all the time, and Abigail because she did rigorous training every other day to stay in top form for her job.

"Thanks again for everything." I did give her the hug this time, squeezing her close. "You're awesome."

"Mmn," She inhaled my scent and promptly coughed, taking a few steps back.

"What did you think I'd smell like!?" I laughed at her happily. "You're no garden either!"

"Whew!" She fanned her nose and chuckled. "Wasn't expecting that."

"I really need a shower." I took her hand and guided her along with me to the front door.

She bumped against me and smiled. "Can I join?"

Abigail didn't waste time, that was for sure. "N-no." I looked away bashfully. "You know I'm shy…"

My friend pouted, but didn't press it. "Actually I should probably head home. I don't have anything to change into and I really need to clean up too. That, and dinner should be ready soonish. Last time I was late I really got a scolding."

"Aww." I pouted at her this time. "I can't even cook you dinner as a thanks?"

"Well you _could_ shower with me as thanks…"

"Dream on." I leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "Thank you, Abby."

"You're welcome." She hesitated a moment and I almost thought she was going to kiss me. When she obviously held herself back I felt like I needed to do _something_ to show my appreciation.

"Hey, wait. Turn around." I spun the girl the opposite way. "Stand just like that for a moment, okay? Look forward." She curiously agreed and looked at my house while I went back to back with her. Taking out my phone, I tapped to the camera and pulled my shirt up to show my bra and gave a peace sign. The flash made her jump and I pulled my clothing back down before she turned. "Thank you!"

"You're…welcome?" She looked totally confused. "What did you take a picture of?"

"Your messed up hair." I scooted her along the path by pushing on her lower back. "Run along home. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"You bet. Goodnight!"

"Night night!" I watched her go with a smile. When she was at my gate entrance I attached her picture in a text message and sent it. It took a few moments, but I saw her reach into her pocket. She stopped walking and looked back at me. I gave a wave and she returned it. As I went into my house and heard my phone bleep at me. Looking at it, I saw she had sent an attachment as well. I gave it a few taps and almost dropped it when I saw the picture. I quickly looked away, my face dark red. I got another buzz and I hesitantly looked at it. ' _It's not that hard, is it?_ ' and a smiley face at the end. I tried to steady myself and tapped back to her: ' _Maybe one day_ ' I watched my phone come up with a reply. ' _Did you save it?_ ' I hesitated, my fingers hovering above the phone screen. I felt my cheeks color more and I finally gathered the nerve to make a few taps and then reply back: ' _Yes._ '

* * *

Driving into town was a little more hectic than normal. I was used to riding a horse bareback or with saddlebags to store things in that I bought. Actually having a truck, especially one that I was driving for the first time, made things a lot more difficult. I had arrived several hours early this time, and was pleased to see only a few people mulling around. I packed Gus' truck in its usual spot and began unloading. My stand was where it was last year, only now extended to include Leah's as well. Luckily the Mayor saw this as a community event so it was all set up on my behalf without me even having to worry about it.

As I put my produce up, I felt my ponytail be gently tugged on a few times from behind. Turning, I beamed at the red head in front of me. "Molly! Hey, I didn't know you'd be here!"

"Of course!" She was wearing a black tank top that was a little tight on her toned body, and showed off her midriff. Green booty shorts were covering her bottom with a golden triforce emblem right on the butt. Her massive thick hair was in its usual double binding down her back. "I normally follow the farmer's markets twice a month."

"Twice a month!?" I could barely keep up with one a season, let alone six. "How big is your farm!?"

"Pretty big. I have three helpers now." She was observing my harvest. "But _wow_ these look fantastic! Oh my, these are…" she looked at me, eyes widening. "You're a mage, aren't you!?"

"Shhh!" I shushed her and held a finger to my lips. "Shush, no one knows!"

"Oh man, that's so _cool_!" She hopped in place. "Show me how to do that!"

"I-I can't show people, I barely know how to myself. I passed out not too long ago and almost went to the hospital because of it."

Molly hummed at eyed me. "You are a little thing. Maybe you need more storage space. I have a great recipe for trail mix that'll give you energy all day long."

"Yes, please." I had to start moving my stuff and setting it up, and was pleased to find my friend easily grabbing a second basket for me to carry. "So you said before you have fans? What do you do?"

"Internet artist." She helped pop my produce in their spots and walked back with me to the truck for the last one. "I do request and stuff online for sketches of games and the like."

"I have a friend that would love to meet you. Abby is a huge game nerd. She's also my adventurer that helps me go exploring in a mine for ores."

"Lucky! My usual adventurer a real stick-in-the-mud. He's efficient and fast, but not much of a personality. Sometimes I hire him just to see how long it takes before he wants to pound me into the ground from my bubbly personality. I make little bets with myself."

"Oh you're a little minx aren't you?"

"Guilty!" She pumped one hand up in the air. "But man it's fun!" She hopped in place and gave a few air jabs. "He's a martial arts master, just needs a sense of humor." Standing up now, she looked over at my stand. "Do you have anymore? Not quite full."

"Oh, my friend Leah shares with me now. She made my sign!" I moved the sign from my cart to the front and set it up.

"Wow!" Molly looked it over. "This is high grade stuff. I wish I had one like this."

"She does requests. I can get you on top of her priority list."

Molly cheered at me. "Score! Friend with benefits!" She gave me a high five. "Hey, I'll come by later and see about that. For now I should head back to my stand way over there." She pointed roughly where Emily and Harley lived. "Come visit if you have time."

"Sure thing." I waved to her and watched her jog away, her hair bouncing behind her. Looking around, I noticed that a lot of other people were starting to set up shop as well. I recognized a few people but couldn't quite place their names to the faces. I did see one that I knew and called out to them. "Hey, Riley!" The girl paused and looked around before seeing my wave.

"Oh, hey Kim!" The girl came over to me with a smile. She had short brown hair and clear blue eyes. She was sporting a black tank top with a purple short sleeved shirt over it, matched with brown jeans. "Glad you made it again. I really liked your strawberries last time."

"Thanks! Leah is going to be selling this time too, you can a statue this time." I got a nod. "Hey, are you setting up? Need any help?"

"Nah, but thanks. I'm good to go, just waiting for people to start getting here." The woman looked around and nodded at the crowd that was slowly starting to gather. "Always enjoy coming to Pelican town, it's a great place to get away to."

"For real. I'm glad I chose to come here. City life was really getting to me."

"Was your old place that bad?"

Thinking about it now really brought up questions. Was it as bad as I thought? "I'm not sure. At the time I felt a little suffocated and… useless. Like I knew there was more for me, but it was so safe there. I had enough money for my apartment and food, I had spare cash to blow on a game collection, had a car instead of a horse… But I felt a little empty inside. Now I'm doing hard labor most every day, struggling to pay my bills, sweating my butt of in the sun, and relying on mass gatherings just to survive till the next harvest… But man I _love_ it." Scratching the back of my head, right under my ponytail, I gave a small laugh. "I'm so happy."

"Well good for you!" Riley nodded her approval. "You could be a motivational speaker."

"Pfft, as if." We shared a laugh together. "Oh, there's Leah!" I waved over my head.

"I'll let you get to it then." Riley shook my hand and we wished each other the best of luck today.

Leah was struggling to carry several bags, and I teasingly crossed my arms and tapped my foot. "Wow, you're so late! I've been here for an hour!"

"Shush and help!" Her poor arms were shaking and I hopped to it, grabbing the bags that I could to ease her burden. "Oh geeze, that was so heavy…"

"I could have picked you up, you know…" We both began setting up her stand, although I was doing the bulk of the work. The girl, normally strong in the arms from all her carving and hammering, was struggling to lift things. "Did you carry all of this from your house!?"

"I did," she admitted.

"You should have just called me and I could have came by and got you…"

Leah shook her head. "I was a total spaz all last night and this morning. I would have just annoyed you and made us both late." She took a deep breath and let it out quickly. "Anyway!" She seemed to have regained her vigor and began setting up shop as well. Once she was completely ready, I broke out a bag of oranges to share. My fruit trees were a great source of income for me, but it took an insanely long time for them to bear fruit. As such, I tried to leave them as a reserve or treat for my friends. Leah was definitely thankful and I knew the extra vitamins would perk us up for the morning rush.

Abigail came shortly after and leaned against my stand to show her support. Although I got a cheerful enough greeting, the one between hr and Leah was a little forced. The artist had a discussion with Abigail about her suggestion of a polygamous relationship and it didn't go over so well. Abigail was pretty against the idea, and I was stuck somewhere in the middle of worry, confusion, and fear. Needless to say, their friendship was more than a little strained at the moment. I don't think they've actually spoken to each other since then, to be honest…

As time went on, more and more people started showing interest in our goods. Leah was handing out contact cards like crazy, although her sales were slow compared to mine. Apparently word of the new famer had gotten around and a few restaurant owners were inspecting my crops for quality. Although they didn't purchase much, they _did_ put in request for specific crops to be grown in the fall so they could get a steady, bi-weekly supply from either a local pickup or delivery. I didn't want to buy a truck just yet, so lower prices and a pick up seemed to be the best choice.

All in all, I managed to sell almost all of my crops, and the remaining went to Gus for his saloon. He made sure to get to me before Pierre did, a fact that Abigail teased him about. After cleaning up, Leah was forced to admit that she wasn't going to sell out. Although she made more than a few transactions, her prices were a little steep still. I couldn't blame her, because if it took her several hours to make one statue then her time invested verses the payout would be well below minimal wage. The girl had to eat, after all.

"There you are!" A new voice came up. I turned to see a very metro looking male walking up to us. "I was hoping to find you here, Leah."

"Hi there," I greeted him happily. "We were about to pack up, but I'm sure we can stay a bit for one of her friends!"

"Oh dear Yoba…" Leah groaned out, putting her face in her hands. "Kel, I swear to all that is holy…"

I recognized that name but couldn't quite place it. The man leaned over the counter and smiled at Leah. "Come on, Baby, you know I'd come see your display."

"Ew, don't call me that." Leah moved back from him. "You lost the right to call me that years ago."

The connection was starting to form, but I had to make sure. "Hi, I'm Kim." I leaned over and offered my hand.

"Kim, hello." He shook my hand pleasantly. "I am Kel, Leah's lover."

"EX lover." Leah spat at him.

"Come on, Babe, I drove four hours just to see you, show some compassion?"

I leaned back a little to get closer to Abigail. "This doesn't look good," I whispered softly to her.

"No kidding," Abigail whispered back. I noticed her stance shift lightly, something I've seen her do before battle. " I have a bad feeling about this…"

"Don't even," I put an arm in front of her. "You get in any little skirmish and you'll be fined by the guild." I walked forward instead, standing next to Leah to show my support.

"Kel, I swear!" Leah was looking pretty livid at this point. "Can't you just _please_ take a hint?"

"I took it," Kel insisted. "And I came to say I was sorry. I messed up. I took you for granted. I'm _sorry_!" He held out his hands. "I was stupid, and I admit that. Now… Now I can support us. Come back with me, let me show you I have changed, and make up for what I did."

I hated those words. Not because it was the past ex of Leah's that was saying them, but because those were the words that took my virginity in high school. The words that made me the butt of all the jokes from the football team. The words that made me cry for days alone while smiling as if it didn't bother me in public. I moved before I could stop myself and put my arm around Leah's waist. "Sorry, she's taken now."

The look on Kel's face was nothing short of shocked. "Wha… you?"

"Me." I insisted, standing tall. "I'm dating her now, sorry. You'll just have to go back alone."

"Y-yeah!" Leah jumped in. "Kim and I are lovers now, and she's everything I need. Physically _and_ emotionally. Things you both failed at." I was seriously shocked at the amount of pent up anger that my friend had. She wasn't holding anything back.

"Seriously!? A chick!?" Kel pointed at me and by now I saw Sam and Sebastian starting to make their way over to us as well. "How is she going to plow you every night?"

"I don't _want_ it every night!" Leah rose her voice. "Something you never caught on to! There's more to a relationship than.. than just _sex_! Why don't you try asking people how their day was, if they're happy, if you can help them in any way!?"

Things were really starting to get out of hand and Kel didn't show any signs of wanting to back down. "Look, maybe you should just go?" I tried lamely, and was ignored.

Kel got almost into Leah's face and spoke to her a little loudly as well. " _You_ were the one begging _me_ for it."

"I begged for _attention_ ," Leah countered. "A mistake I will never make again! Now get out of my face before I slap you away from me!"

Kel did back off, but pointed at her with a glare. "You'll beg for me when she can't give you everything you need."

"Yeah!?" Leah called at his retreating figure. "Yeah!?" Her voice rose into a full blown angry scream now. "At least I never had to _fake it_ with her!"

That seemed to be the breaking point. Kel turned on his heels and stormed back over to us. I quickly got in front of Leah and gave him a nasty look. " You should leave _now_." I growled at him just before I felt my head jerk to the side and the ground meet my body rather harshly. I was dazed, but the pain on my face was clear enough. He had just slapped me straight off my feet.

Leah's shout came next and I rolled over to see my friend literally tackle Kel so they rolled on the ground. Leah was over powered quickly and was pinned by her shoulders. The man raised his arm and made a fist, bringing it down only to be tackled himself by Abigail. The purple haired girl slammed him down with one hand and pulled a dagger from her boot with the other. Holding it to Kel's throat, she spoke to him in a deathly calm voice. "Leave." A small flicker of fire danced around her blade, creeping up her arm and over her shoulders. When she let the trembling man go, he scampered away and yelled obscenities and threats while doing so.

I was helped up by Sebastian and Leah by Sam. "You okay?" He asked softly, moving my chin to look at my face. "I am _so_ sorry, I could have done something but I hesitated thinking he wouldn't hit you…"

"It's fine," I tried to smile at him. "Thank you." I was shaking lightly and my face was starting to burn even more. "Leah?"

"I'm okay," She replied, moving over to me to check my cheek. "Oh Kim, I'm sorry…"

"I'm fine, really." I tried to take a breath. "Wow you _tackled_ him!"

"But Abigail really-" Leah stopped, looking around. "Where is Abigail?" We all looked around for her. I caught a glimpse of her purple hair right before the door to Pierre's shop closed and moved to follow her.

"I saw her, give me a moment…" I looked at Leah to make sure it was okay if I left and got a nod.

"Go, I'm fine."

I jogged over to the door and let myself in. I can only imagine what she was thinking right now. I had said I was dating Leah and she clearly implied that we were more than just a little past third base. Paired with the fact that the artist was very open about her feelings and desires with the relationship, I could tell Abigail was probably running all sorts of situations over in her head right now.

Since Pierre was in the farmer's market, I allowed myself the passage through the door in the back and into their house. "Abby?" I called out softly.

"She went up stairs," Caroline told me. "She looked like a mess, did something happen?"

"Kind of… May I?" I got a nod and continued along my way. I trotted up the stairs and over to Abigail's room. The door was slightly open and I could hear her pacing, loudly sniffing every now and then. Taking a breath to steady myself, I entered with a light tap on the doorframe.

"Of course," Abigail groaned, turning away from me and wiping her eyes so I couldn't see.

"Hey…" I carefully came up behind her and touched her shoulder. "Abby?"

She finally turned and looked at me. Mascara was smeared down her cheeks and across the sides of her eyes. Her face was wet with tears and she looked like she had just lost a pretty hectic battle in the mines. "So, you and Leah?" She got right to it. "You could have told me."

"Abby, I"

"No, it's fine!" She paced away from me. "I should have saw the signs! She's so caring and understanding and trying to do her best for you. I mean-"

"Abby, wait, listen-"

"Just _tell_ me!" She demanded now, tears coming again. "Why do you show yourself to her, but all I get is a little teasing picture after I work all day to help you? Why do you let her… see you in lingerie when I'm lucky to catch a glimpse of your stomach!? Am I just that far off? Was I even considered!?"

" _LISTEN!_ " I yelled at her, successfully getting her to stop rambling. "I said that to piss him off. Leah said that because she knows that would hurt him. We haven't had sex, and we're not dating!"

"Then why do you hide from me? I don't want in your pants, I want in your _heart_!" She tapped her chest and looked at me with pleading eyes. "What am I doing that's preventing you from opening up to me? I'm not being a pervert here, I really want to know. Am I too pushy? Am I too insisting? Tell me and I'll _change_."

"No!" I shook my head and tried to form the words. "I'm… I'm just _scared._ "

"Of what?" She asked back at once, pleading with me.

"That you'll change your mind!" I felt it build up in my stomach and throat and before I could do anything about it, I let all my feelings out at once. "I'm scared you'll see me and lose interest! I'm scared you'll look at me and realize you don't actually want to be with another girl! I'm _scared_ that I'm not good enough and once you do see me you'll stop trying so hard!" I tried to take a breath and realized I was crying now as well. "I'm scared you'll think I'm not good enough and… and I don't want you to stop!"

Abigail closed the distance between us quickly and I felt her kiss me before I even realized what was happening. Her hands grabbed my waist and I was pulled off my feet and walked a few steps to fall onto a bed before I even knew it. Her lips broke just enough for us to get air before I was kissed again, harder and with more feeling. "I won't stop," She spoke against me, leaning back enough to look down. "I won't ever stop trying." Her hands went over my stomach and I felt her pull my shirt up. "Let me see?"

I swallowed and pulled my shirt and bra up and over my head, letting them fall onto the floor next to me. I gazed up at her as she sat on my waist, eyes drinking me in. She finally spoke up after a few moments of silence, almost crying again. "You're beautiful." Leaning over, she hugged me close. "Absolutely, positively beautiful." Her hands went under me and held me close, her face burying into my neck. "Kim, I won't change my mind. I won't get tired of you. I won't think it's a mistake. I promise."

Trying my best, I gave a nod to her. We locked eyes again and she leaned forward to kiss my forehead this time. "Promise."

"Promise what?" She asked softly in a whisper.

"I promise I won't hide from you anymore." I pulled her close to me. "I'm sorry for all this…"

"Don't be." She shook her head. "If I hadn't completely pushed Leah away after… that… Maybe I wouldn't have just over reacted like this…"

"I'm sorry anyway…"

"Me too…" We looked at each other for a moment before once again giving a tight hug. "You really are pretty."

I blushed and gave a soft half laugh, half cough. "Don't make me shy…"

"I like a little shy…" She pulled back enough to gaze at me. "…Wow."

I resisted the urge to cover myself and instead laid back on her bed. "Take a picture, it'll last longer?"

Abigail looked surprised, but quickly covered it. She placed a hand on my stomach and leaned in a little more. "Maybe I could?" She leaned a bit more in and I closed my eyes.

The door opened at that moment and Caroline's voice came in. "Abigail, your friends are all downstairs and- oh my!"

"Mom!" Abigail shrieked, looking over at her. "Get out!" I mentally ran the situation over in my head. Completely topless. On bed. Abigail straddling me. Mother walks in room. Great. As the door closed, Abigail groaned and hung her head in defeat. "Mood _ruined_."

I smiled as best I could. I was trying to think of something to say to cheer her up, but Pierre's screaming voice came from downstairs. "They're _what_!?"

"Shirt. Now."


	16. Chapter 16

To say that things were a little awkward with Pierre would be quite the understatement. When I came into his store the day after the farmer's market, his greeting was… a little less than thrilled. Caroline had completely ignored the fact that all my friends were there looking for Abigail. When Pierre came in from the outdoor market she had whispered 'They're having sex!' to him loud enough for everyone to hear. His reaction was enough to ensure everyone who questioned what they heard to instantly think it was true. When I came down later with Abigail… wow, that was weird. So here I was now, the day after, trying to buy some late summer/early fall seeds…

 **Stardust XVI**

 **By: Satashi**

"Morning," I greeted him lamely. The man eyed me with a mixture of what I could tell was annoyance, acceptance, regret, and joy. "H-how are you today?"

"Oh… Fine."

I wish he would just scream at me or something…I had no idea what was going on in his mind. Was he mad at me for real? Was he just upset his daughter had finally started to 'have sex' even though we weren't going to? Maybe he thought all those things I told him about Abigail saving me and protecting me was all a cover for our relationship? "Uhm… I'm planting soon… Anything your store needs?"

"No… not really… just anything…"

I finally broke. "Pierre, Abigail and I didn't-"

He held up a hand. "I don't want to know. She's my little girl, even if she does try to act like an adult. She will always be my daughter… I just don't… want to know that she would ever do those things."

"We _weren't_!"

"So she _wasn't_ undressing you in her room?" He looked at me.

"I.. well… that's not really… I mean…" I hung my head, my ponytail spilling over my shoulders. "Okay, yes, shirt came off. Guilty. That's it. No, we kissed. I kissed her." I looked at him again. "Honest words, it ended there. We weren't going to. I have more respect for you two than to try and …shag your daughter mid day in your house."

"… Did you just say _shag_?"

"I… I did?"

Pierre looked at me oddly before finally smiling and then laughing. "Okay! I believe you! Phew, that's a load off my mind! She's only nineteen you know! You wouldn't do something like that so early would you!?"

"O-Of course she wouldn't!" I deflected the question seamlessly. "So! Now that you know we are _not_ sexually active, can you _please_ tell me what to plant? And can we never bring this up again? As in ever?"

"I would be thrilled not to."

After roughly an hour of spending my morning shopping, I finally managed to leave the store and whistle for my horse. He was equipped with a saddle this time, as I need the attached bags to carry things. "I know, boy." I told him when he got close. "I know you don't like it, I'll take it off as soon as we get home, okay?" He shook his head and snorted at me, which I took as a 'don't mention it' kind of reply. As I jumped up and threw my leg over, I looked up at Abigail's window on the second floor. I really wanted to talk with her about things, but I knew it wasn't the best idea at the time. Not after yesterday's incident.

Instead, I made my way south and galloped through the town. I gave waves to everyone I passed, stopping only when Penny caught my attention. I gave her a curious look before realizing it was a Friday. "Hey Penny," I greeted with a smile.

"Good morning." She looked up at me with a happy expression. "Uhm, may I ask if it's still okay if I come by tonight?"

"I have plans most of the day and will be at the saloon with friends tonight," I answered her honestly. "But you can stay at my farm and even teach the kids there today if you want."

"Oh, thank you but it's too far for that."

Giving a nod, I went on. "Then you're welcome by anytime. I may be in the fields or not even there yet, but my door is unlocked. You're welcome in, okay? For real, just go in. Have fun, do anything you want, and I'll be there when I can get there." She looked a little unsure so I repeated myself for her. "Hey, Penny? For real, I offered a place for you to be comfortable when you don't feel it at your house. I'm not going back on that. So go over, help yourself to anything in the kitchen, watch some television, play some games, read some books, I don't mind. I'll see you there okay?"

"Mmmn!" She nodded at me and gave a small wave to let me go back on my way.

I rode past Emily and Sam's houses and after a few minutes came upon a familiar little cottage. I saw Leah out front, fishing pole in some sort of rig she had spiked into the ground. She was sitting next to it with her sketchbook and pencil in hand. "Morning!" I called out, making her jump slightly in her chair.

"Kim! You scared me!"

"Sorry, not sorry?" I hopped off Okami and let him wander around. "What's this?" I motioned to the rig.

"Oh! Maru made it for me. I cast my line out and place my pole in there. When the tip of it jiggles from the fish tugs, it'll ring that little bell at the tip. That way I can fish while focusing on other things."

"I bet Willy hates it." I said at once, looking it over.

"Oh he does! Says it undermines the patience of fishing. I call it multi tasking." She motioned for me to sit beside her. "So! How was it?"

"How was what?" I could tell by that grin on her face. "Shush, you know good and well nothing happened."

"Nothing?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Well…" I retold the scene as best I could, starting from the initial yelling at each other, the kissing, and finally how the awkward situation came into being. "And that sums it up."

"Oh… Wow, that poor thing… She finally lets open with her emotions and that happens… I feel bad for her." She stroked her braid, lost in thought. "I can see where she's coming from, though. You and I really do have a different relationship. Well it started differently at least." I just nodded, looking out over the water. "But wow, you took off your shirt? I haven't even gotten that yet." I felt the blush come to my cheeks, but knew she said it just for that reason. "I'd love to paint you like that, whenever you think you could. No rush."

"I know," I sighed out and laid back on the grass, looking at the sky now. "You're really taking this easy… I was worried you'd be upset with me…"

"I told you how I feel." Leah started sketching again, talking in a half-focused way. "I am just fine with you kissing her, being naked, even if you had sex." She looked at her lines and then moved on to a different page to start anew. "You have feelings for me, you said so yourself. I believe those feelings are true, and I know you would do anything like that for me, if I truly asked or needed it." She gave me a look to make sure I was hearing her and I nodded. "Doesn't mean I'm not envious. I do want to be that close as well, but it's envy, not jealousy."

"Aren't they really the same thing?"

"Not so much…" Leah began sketching ideas again, her charcoal pencil making sloppy lines that made sense to her mind, but not mine yet. "If I was jealous, I'd have negative emotions and feelings of wanting to take. Right now I'm envious, and have positive emotions of wanting to experience. "

I couldn't help but give a small laugh. "When you say it like that, it makes me feel better."

"Good." Her voice turned teasing and she gave me a sideways blushing look. "Now to make up for it… Want to strip down naked and lay on my bed sometime?"

I gave her a full laugh and actually nodded. "Yeah. You know what? I do. Not full naked, but maybe… Maybe we can start with the top." I stood up now and whistled for Okami. "Not now, though. I have to plant some seeds for next harvest."

"Okay," She was beaming up at me. "Thanks for stopping by." She motioned for me to go over to her, so I did. "Lean down for me." I did as asked, and almost gasped when she held onto my shirt collar and gave me a full, soft kiss on the lips. When the girl let me go, she simply smiled up at me. "Abigail broke that line, so expect more where that came from."

"O-okay…" I was dazed. She was so… boldly casual about it. Besides her face being red, it was almost as if she felt perfectly at peace kissing me. "Thank… you…?"

Leah chuckled and shook her head. "Go on, Farmer girl, go raise some crops."

"I'll do that." I hopped on Okami and looked back at her. "See you tonight?"

"Of course." She waved to me, but quickly grabbed her pole when the bell on the end jingled. "Lunch time!"

Riding away, I shook my head at her bizarre eating habits. I loved fish, but three days in a row was my limit… eating it almost every single day for years on end didn't seem like the best idea to me. Come to think of it, if our relationship _did_ end up going somewhere… how would we eat every day? This question boggled my mind all the way back to my farm. Once there, I rode around slowly, observing my fields.

Ever since I had gotten here a little over half a year ago, I've been slowly expanding my workable area almost daily. I already had twice my first batch ready to plant, and my summer crops were already mostly gone or would regrow into Fall. At the Farmer's Market I had met some more restaurant owners and agreed to supply them in the near future. This was both exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. I knew better than to outsell myself, but now I was worried if I under sold. roughly half of my planned crops were taken already, leaving me a lot less to supply the town with. Granted, they didn't have to buy from me, and I was sure it would be primarily through Pierre, but still… Did I sell myself out?

This question stayed with me as I dismounted and unsaddled my horse. Carrying the groceries inside, I sat down at my table and looked at my laptop. I had a rough simulation of my fields on it, including what I had made workable. Judging from this, at my current pace, I could get another large chunk in before my winter crops. That thought made me suddenly realize I had no idea what crops you did plant in winter. "You can grow in winter, right?" I asked a Junimo that climbed up on the table with me. It shook it's head/body at me and I suddenly felt a small panic attack coming on.

A quick Google search lead me to a few things that _could_ grow, but the majority was leafy greens. That would only get me so far, but paired with a lot of garlic and onions I could probably scrape by. "Onions…" I pictured them in Pierre's shop and groaned loudly, leaning back in my chair. "A whole bag for five gold, and he resells so I would probably only get a few gold for them… All that work for so little…" I debated calling my farmer friends, but decided against it for the time being. I knew they would mostly tell me to focus on animals, as the profit there was quite large.

I picked up my phone and scrolled through the contacts until I found Marnie. The woman picked up after the third ring and gave me a cheerful greeting. "Marnie, hi!" I got up and walked around, a habit I had while on the phone. "Yeah, I'm doing great! I was just planning out my fall crops and was wondering if you would need some hay for winter?" She not only answered in the positive, but I found out that she was actually a little low and was debating selling some of her animals a little early to make up for it. "If I plant some starter now, would it grow enough before winter?" I waited as she thought it over. "It will? Great! I was thinking of just seeding the areas of my field that are already pretty over grown and letting it go wild. Hm? Yeah… Yeah… Actually would credit be fine? I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to survive the winter. Oh thank goodness! Yeah… Yes, of course… okay, you have a great day too! Bye-bye." I clicked off the phone and looked up to the ceiling. "Oh thank goodness!"

A few Junimo on my couch all waved their arms around to celebrate with me, even if they didn't know why. "I just secured my food for the winter," I explained to them. "Almost zero work for a huge pay out. Now I need to go back to town, though…" Jogging back out, I gave a loud whistle for my horse and he came galloping over to me at once. "Hey boy," I greeted him with a loving pet to the nose. "Can you take my back to town? I need some serious seed." He neighed at me and tapped his front leg to the ground a few times. I took it as a positive and hopped up on him, bare back, after only putting the saddle bags on him. I could bear with it this time, even if it was uncomfortable. "Hey, let's go by the mines first?" I guided him north and we began our short journey.

Once we went past Robin's house, I gave Sebastian a wave as he leaned under a tree while having a smoke. He returned it casually before taking another long drag. His look told me he was annoyed, so I steered my faithful steed over in his direction. "Hey, you look pissed."

"Thanks for noticing." He looked out past me and I could tell he was debating sharing the story. "Demetrius told me he was tired of me smoking and forbade me from doing it in the house."

"Wow… what did you say?"

Sebastian exhaled a puff of smoke that I tried to ignore. "I lit one up in front of him and told him to tell someone who cares."

"Whoa!" I looked at him skeptically.

The male sighed and turned so we were facing the same way, looking over the small river that ran near their house. "Yeah, I know. I'm just in a bad mood today. I was working late last night, trying to meet a deadline that got moved up from my client. I didn't get in bed till almost four in the morning… He came to get me for breakfast and told me I was staying up too late on my computer… I mean, I was _working_ , you know?" I gave him a nod, even though he wasn't looking. "I help pay the mortgage, I help buy food, I bought my own motorcycle… I'm old enough to make my own choices, and he's not even my real dad."

"Ouch." I winced slightly at those words. If Demetrius and Robin got together when Maru was born, then Sebastian was probably already old enough to understand the divorce and a new father figure. That, along with the man being a scientist, would clash harshly against a computer programming prodigy. Especially a semi-gothic inspired Sebastian. "You never really got along with him, did you?"

"No, not really. I mean, we don't argue every day or anything, but when we do have differences, neither one of us really handles it well. He wants to be my dad, and he's married to my mom, but that doesn't mean he gets control of _my_ life." He took another long puff and sighed. "When I get enough money saved up, I'm just going to move to the city."

"I know an apartment you could move into," I grinned over at him. "Some lame girl moved out of it to become a farmer." This got me a snort. "Hey, don't give me that. You're glad I'm here, don't deny it."

"Heh, maybe." The man finished his smoke and crinkled the end of it before putting the remains in his pocket. "What do you think, Kim? From an outside standpoint, who was in the wrong?"

Great, thanks for putting me on the spot here. "Well," I began, thinking. "First off about your smoking… I don't like it. Not because it's wrong, or bad for you, but it's unattractive and smells bad. You're really handsome, I think it ruins your look." He gazed over at me before looking away, not saying anything. "As for Demetrius… I don't really know. Honestly, that's something that I need more information on. If he tried to raise you like his own son, and makes Robin happy… Maybe you can accept him as a friend instead of a father? That could help settle little differences, but I don't know how he feels about it. He might think you're his son regardless, so my advice could make things worse… I don't know."

"I get you, though." With a nod, he turned to head back to the house. "Thanks Kim, I'll go try to smooth things over then. Hopefully he'll understand my view if I apologize first and say what's on my mind."

I wasn't sure my advice helped him come to that conclusion or not, but I nodded anyway. "Oh, and Sebastian?"

He looked over his shoulder, hands in his pockets. "Yeah, Kim?"

"You really do look great the way you are. You don't need a cigarette to make you look cool." He hummed at that and continued on his way. Heaving out a sigh, I looked down at Okami. "You think I lead him astray?" He snorted and started walking, not really helping my confidence.

As we made our way across the river bed, I took some time to really look around. Summer was in full blast now, having ramped up in heat to a breaking point. The grass was nice and green, the water good and clear. I hated summer all my life, but being out in the sun all day now made me find a new loathing for it. Although I didn't let it bother me, and my crops did grow better with enough water, the _heat_ was horrible.

Luckily the guild was close by and I was thankful for the shade it offered. When I entered the guild, a small chime rang out and everyone looked over at me. I got a few smiles and a couple of nods in my direction. Most everyone here liked me, mainly because I tended to give adventurers a small discount at my farm when buying direct from me. "Hello, Kim." Marlon greeted me like usual. "Another romp in the mines I take it?"

"You know it." I moved over to him and reached to get my wallet. "Is Abigail available?" The room suddenly got quiet after I spoke. It was so noticeable that I actually turned to look at everyone before Marlon spoke up.

"I'm afraid Abigail is unavailable at the moment."

"Why so?" I felt a little panic start to creep up in my stomach. "She's okay, isn't she?"

"Oh she's fine," Marlon told me with a disapproving tone. "But she violated a code that we take very seriously here." I didn't have to ask what it was, as the past events were still pretty fresh in my mind. "You seem to understand."

"Y-yeah… But she's not like… banned or anything is she?"

"Yes. For two months."

"T-two _months_!?" I literally shrieked and instantly felt all the eyes looking over at me. "Because she defended me?" Marlon raises a calm hand and I settled myself. "Sorry," I murmured softly, embarrassed. "I was there, she really did protect people. She didn't start it."

"She finished it. Very clearly." Marlon told me sternly. "Everyone here has had extensive, specific training. We are tools to be used in battle. We fight, we kill, we get paid for it. If any of us were to break bad, then it would take more than just a few people to stop us. People like that go to war, not sell their services. _Especially_ not threatening people's lives with their magic."

I felt my mouth go dry. He was right, and I couldn't say anything against it. She acted in the right, and protected people weaker than herself, but she still crossed a line she knew was there. She pulled her daggers on a person, not a monster. She used her mana to scare, not to save. She… got barred from the guild because of me. If I had dodged that slap, or kept my mouth shut then… Then Leah would have…

"My advice," Marlon spoke up again, catching my attention. "Is that you don't think too much on this. You can't change the past, and thinking about how you could disrespects the choices they made. Now," He leaned forward and tapped the desk with one finger. "Move along and respect what was done. Prices will be paid, and she will be back. Until then, you need to pick a new partner."

I turned and looked at the diverse group around me. Who would I trust myself to? A swordsman? A magician? A combination like Abby was? "I'll go into the mines with you." Someone spoke up, grabbing my attention. A male stood and walked over to me. He was excessively tall with short, spiky white hair. A red and black trench coat of sorts covered most of his body with a bow and quiver on his back. "I know you don't go far in, I'm okay with that."

I looked up at him and smiled. He looked strong enough to protect me, and I secretly had a thing for anyone who could use the bow. "Okay, thank you. How much?" A couple of chuckles could be heard and he just smiled at me.

"I'll go for Abigail's price." Marlon made a disapproving sound, but didn't say anything about it. The man held out his hand towards me. "I'm Ryou. Nice to meet you."

"Kim." I shook his hand and then got my wallet out. "Two hours up front and anymore than that I can pay as we go?"

"Very fair." Ryou left the building with me and I unhooked my pickax from my back and adjusted my backpack. "What are you after?"

"I _was_ hoping to find some iridium. I got a tiny chunk not too long ago… it was barely enough to coat the tip of my pickax, but it's starting to chip off." I showed him the small purple color at the tip of my pick. "I got it when I was with Abigail, but have been using it excessively since then. Clint warned me it would happen, but I was too excited to listen."

"So what are you after now?" Ryou guided me to the elevator and closed the door of it behind us.

"Gemstones. If Abigail can't come in here, then I need to bring her gems for her mana. My needs can wait."

Ryou nodded. "Very honorable. I'll try my best for you." He hit the tenth floor button and I almost staggered back. The mines were divided up into layers, but was actually a snaking path that went deeper and deeper. There were ten layers in all, accessible from the elevator in sections, but mainly from mine cart tracks. Abigail and I had only been to the second floor, and we got wrecked there.

"Is… That okay?" I pointed to the number as we descended, the old shaft making harsh clanging noises as it went lower and lower. My lantern was giving off our light now, but it wasn't too much at all.

"Just fine." He nodded casually. When the door opened I felt an overwhelming sense of fear. The air was dank and almost suffocating. The smell of sulfur was lingering in the air and it made me feel slightly sick. As I stepped out, I held a hand to my mouth and tried to collect myself. I heard things everywhere, bones clacking and echoes of disembodied voices calling out to me.

"I… I think we should leave… I don't like it here." I was shaking, as if something inside of me was being repressed.

"Oh, that's right… You're a Naturist, aren't you?" Ryou put a hand on his hip. "Abigail mentioned that once. This is your first time being so far away from your mana source, isn't it?"

"N-not counting the city, but that was before I knew I had it…" I rubbed my arm with my free hand , making the lantern light shake and cause shadows to move around.

"It can be scary, but you'll be fine." Ryou took the bow off of his back and nocked an arrow. With that, he shot it upwards until it hit the ceiling and exploded in an almost blinding ball of white light. Instantly I felt warm and could see perfectly. Skeletons and shadow monsters were fleeing now, scampering to get away from the light being cast. I could have sword I saw a flying object as well, but it was gone now too. The light stayed, shining like a second sun underground. "I have the mana of light," He informed me before pointing to the side. "I see some gems over there. Shall we?"

I followed him closely, almost holding onto his arm for support. What had just happened made me speechless. We had been struggling to even get to the third floor, and this person just… cleared out the tenth without even trying. "Why would no one have mined these if people are capable of getting here?"

Ryou shrugged lightly. "The cost of someone to get you here isn't worth getting gems. You could buy them for less than that."

"H-how much do you charge!?" I looked at him in absolute shock.

"Five thousand an hour." He wasn't bragging, but just answering my question. "Go ahead, get what you need. I made a deal with you, and I'll keep it." He sat on a large boulder after giving a small hop onto it. "I'll keep watch. My light will stay for a while, so you can work in peace." I nodded, still rattled by this fact. I thought Abigail was amazing, and limited by her being a new comer. To have someone… like _that_ here as well… Made me really understand just how powerless I actually was. After I finally slammed my pickax into the purple colored amethyst, Ryou began some small talk. "So, you're the new farmer, right?"

"Not really new anymore." I grunted and slammed my pick again, cracking the rocks a bit and sending chips flying. The ore deposit was large, and I had never actually hit gems before. I had busted out small formations, yes, but actually _crystals…_ "I've been here over half a year now."

"Hmmm…." He looked around a little before continuing. "Hey, do you grow blackberries?"

"I have some bushes planned for Fall." I grunted and slammed my pick yet again, feeling my arms already start to throb from the vibrating wood. I now realized why Robin had told me the handles she made wouldn't be good for more advanced things. "I just… gave a harvest up so I need to…. replant." I broke my thoughts up with each hit I made.

"Think I could come pick some when they're ready? My grandmother loves making blackberry cobbler."

I pictured the tall man rummaging through bushes for berries and had to hold back a chuckle. "Yeah. Come by in a month or so. I'll remember you for sure." I gripped my pick with both hands and prepared for a serious hit. I reared back and moved it as hard as I could, hearing a clang and a loud cracking sound. My eyes went wide as I looked at my wooden handle. A long crack ran down it from the head halfway down to where I gripped it. "No… no no no no no!" I had just gotten so _lucky_ as to have such a nice person take me to a place where I might never again see in the rest of my life and this happened!?

"Tough break," Ryou grimaced at it. "Looks ruined."

"No!" I held it again and swung once more, this time successfully shattering the handle. "Fffff!" I screamed out a loud obscenity and threw the handle down. "Why now!? I need these for Abigail!" I felt a little panicked. "If… If I don't recharge, I get really tired and sick… if she can't eat gems, then how will she get her mana back?"

Ryou looked at me a moment and then sighed out. "Well.. can't be helped." He hopped off the boulder and walked a few steps away. Another arrow was taken from his quiver and he aimed over near the edge of the darkness. I was about to ask what was going on, but he let the arrow go, blazing a streak of white hot light over and into a skeleton miner, which exploded. He then picked up the mining tool it had been holding and tossed it over to me. "Here, catch."

I fumbled the tool and it dropped to the ground. "E-ew!" I looked at the dust covered pick and the rags of tattered cloth that were around it. "Something _dead_ was using that!"

"And now something living is." He motioned to it, hopping back on his boulder. "Go ahead, it's safe." I sighed and picked it up, feeling an odd sense of dread from it. "You're very in tune with nature, it'll feel weird." he kept on. "The undead is the exact opposite of your life giving mana. I'm shocked you haven't thrown up yet just being down here."

"Trust me, I want to." I held it in my hands and looked back at the deposit. With a heave, I smashed it again and again, trying my best to get the uncomfortableness out of me.

Time went by slowly for me as I worked, talking every now and then, but mainly working on the gems that we found. After a few hours, I was feeling more drained than I cared to admit and wiped the sweat from my forehead. I wanted just one more, and I just so happened to find an iridium deposit not far from us. After my first hit, I felt a little of my vision start to fog over, and the second hit made me stagger slightly. "Okay, that's it." Ryou came over to me and put a hand on my shoulder. "We're leaving."

"B-but, I need this…" I gave him a look that clearly said I wasn't going anywhere.

"You, miss, are using your mana to swing, and I'm not about to let you do something stupid." He took the pickax from me easily and hurled it back into the darkness.

"H-hey!" I glared at him. "I need that!"

"No, it was a temporary solution. Kim, look at me." He moved his hand over my face and light came up, blinding me for a moment. "Oh sweet Yoba, you really are inexperienced. Okay, my fault, I should have pulled you sooner." He placed his hand on my chest and before I could slap it away, I felt the light be pushed inside of me. All at once I felt tingly and the haze around my eyes cleared. I felt my strength again and I looked up at him in confusion. "I gave you some of my mana. Feel better?"

"Y-yeah… great…"

"And the pickax?"

"I…" My mind was very clear now, and I realized I was still creeped out by it. "I don't want it…"

"Thought so." He grabbed my backpack that was stuffed to the brim with different types of crystalline gemstones. "Let's get out of here, Kim." He guided me to the elevator and hit the button to go back up.

"Wow… Thank you…"

"It's the caves at this level," he replied simply. "Really gets in your head, makes you unrational. People like you even more so." He reached into one of his satchels and handed me a water bottle. "I feel like you'll need this."

"Why?" I took it from him and tried to fight back the sulfur scent that was starting to become more noticeable now that there was fresher air around. My clothes reeked and my body was now feeling better, but the sudden change back to comfortable was really messing with me. Finally I felt something in my throat and I coughed. A second later I realized what was going on, and the elevator stopped just in time for me to run out and around the corner. I threw up almost at once, hacking and coughing for quite a while before I felt better.

"Your body tries to get all the bad things out of you once you're back in touch with your element. For us, that means purging. You probably want to take a nice shower and change clothes when you can."

"Y-yeah." I rinsed my mouth and spat it out several times before taking long gulps of the liquid. I felt immediately better, and b the time sunlight hit my face again, I could feel myself recharging on my own. "Oh sunlight… I missed you…"

Ryou chuckled and handed me my backpack. "Five hours, so three hours to pay." He waited while I got the money and paid him. "And I can get some blackberries?"

"Of course." I shouldered the pack and felt the energy to smile at him. "Thanks again, this is more than I've ever seen, let alone got in one trip."

"Teaching someone something new is a very nice reward in itself." He pocketed my money and gave a light wave before heading off. "See you around."

With a sharp whistle, I called my horse over and mounted him. It was starting to get close to gathering time, so I headed for the saloon instead of my house to change. They were used to me smelling bad sometimes, and it wasn't like I didn't keep some extra deodorant in my satchel just for these reasons. When I arrived, I doused myself in nice smelling spray and then a small spritz of mostly empty perfume.

The saloon was already starting to fill up with the regulars. Gus and Emily were working at a nice pace, and I felt more hungry that I had in ages. "Gus, hey!" I called to him. "I need the fattest, juiciest hamburger you have ever made in your life, with like… all the toppings and fries the size of my head." I held my hands up to emphasize my request. "Actually, chili cheese fries!"

"Someone has been working!" Emily laughed from her side of the counter.

Gus was chuckling himself. "I'm on it Kim. You'll be in your regular spot?"

I pointed at him and headed back to the arcade area. Nobody was here yet so I put a quarter in the Prairie King arcade game and began to play. I made it just past the second boss when Emily came to deliver my order. I didn't want to quit, as I was really doing well, but the smell of food made me give in and attack the plate.

Sebastian was the first to join me, and sat down beside me so he could steal some of my fries. "You hungry or what?" He asked simply, eying the remaining half of my burger and the sloppy mess of fries that I had to resort to eating with a fork. "Why do you get chili and cheese on them if you're still going to dip them in ketchup?"

"Don't judge me." I took another mouthful and chewed blissfully. "How did it go with your pops?"

"Not great, but well enough." He reached for more of my fries but I swatted his hand lightly. "Oh come on, you have like _three_ servings here."

"I'm hungry." He looked at me a moment so I gave him a sly grin. "Tradesies. I'll share my fries if you don't smoke tonight."

He huffed some hair away from his face before taking my fork and stabbing some fries to eat. "Jokes on you, I left my smokes at home." He shoved them into his mouth. "Mmm… mmm good. I think I'll eat more." I gave him a glare, but I _had_ done it to myself.

Leah came in next, giving us a cheerful greeting and sitting down across from me. "Oh my…"

I met her eyes and slowly brought the left over quarter of my burger to my mouth and slowly bit into it. "Mmmmnnnn meat."

"Kim!" Leah looked at me, shocked. Sebastian had to put his head down on the table to try and muffle his laughter. "What if we knew that cow!?"

I put the burger down and clapped both hands into prayer position in front of myself. "Thank you, cow, for your sacrifice." My male friend snorted loudly, but Leah at least still appreciated my joke.

"Fine, I'll stay quiet."

"Here, have some fries," I offered her instead.

Sebastian quickly raised his head. "Chili fries have meat on them." I was about to scold him for saying that, because she could easily pick the ones on the bottom, but her stabbed my plate again and shoved some into his mouth.

"He's hungry today too."

"Munchies." Sebastian agreed, nodding.

"So, Leah," I smiled at her coyly. "We're both going to chow down tonight, you in?"

"Oh I'm in." She replied back, trying to sound cool. "Gus! Bring me a soup, salad, _and_ breadsticks tonight!"

Gus leaned back to see into our room. "So your usual then?"

Leah faltered and cheeks colored slightly. "Y-yeah. My usual."

"SEBASTIAN!" The roar made us all stop and look at the entrance to the arcade section where Sam was standing. "Tonight is the night! Stick up!"

Sebastian gave a small. "Huh." as he stood up. "I accept your challenge." Reaching over, he plucked a cue stick from the wall. Dramatically, he pointed it at his friend. "Prepare yourself."

I shook my head and rolled my eyes. "Boys. Can't live with them, can't bury them in your farm."

"Seriously." Leah sighed. "Hey, I never really got to say it, but thanks again for standing with me when Kel was here. It really meant a lot to me."

"Yeah, of course. You doing okay? He really got on you?"

"I'm just fine, what about you?"

"Eh," I rubbed my sore cheek carefully. "Honestly it's bruised pretty bad, but a little makeup covered it just fine." I saw her tense up so I tried to wave it off. "Oh don't worry, at least he didn't take a sword to my nose!" I pointed at the scar and she relaxed, even smiled a bit. "There you go."

"Speaking of, where is Abigail?" Leah looked at the clock on the wall. "She's normally the first one here."

It didn't occur to me that the girl might not even want to come tonight. "Oh…"

"Oh?" She tilted her head at me. "What Oh?" I reluctantly told Leah the story, as she would come to find out regardless within a few days. This lead into my peculiar smell tonight and my bizarre adventure in the mines. I showed her my haul of gems and her eyes widened at the sight. "Wow… are those all gemstones!?"

"Yeah, at least I think. I'm not sure what really classifies a gem from a rock, but at any rate I think it'll hold her over until she can go back into the mines." I closed the backpack and clipped it shut. "Weird how I can try so hard to get so little, then all of a sudden I can just have one massive piece of luck that really changes everything."

"Very true." Leah propped her chin up on her palm and smiled at me fondly. "I kind of feel the same about how my life was until someone moved in."

I felt my heart skip a beat and go right into my throat. "H-hey, don't make me shy in front of everyone…"

"I'm sorry?" She playfully ran her foot along my leg.

Abigail's voice suddenly came between us as she walked over. "Am I interrupting?" Her words made Leah retreat slightly. The purple haired girl sat down next to me and sighed. I could tell she was depressed and was probably working a way to get it off her chest, so I decided to help her out.

"So, I went to the mines today," I began. Abigail stiffened lightly and I continued. "Since you risked everything to save our butts, I got you this." I reached under the table and hefted my backpack up. "To you, from me."

Abigail gave me an odd look as she slowly unclipped the bag. As it opened, her face lit up in surprise, then turned to confusion, and then to a little bit depressed. "You got all this… for me?"

"Absolutely." I nodded at her proudly. "Some guy named Ryou took me down with me so I could make sure you mad mana nibbles."

"Ryou…" Abigail smiled fondly. "He teaches me. Really kind, always looking out for others… I guess he did it for free?"

"I paid what you normally get paid." I smiled cheerfully. "He was really ready to help make sure you're good."

"Great guy… Thanks Kim, I don't really know what to say… Thank you!" Her hand reached in and she picked out a chunk of amethyst. "Looks delicious…"

Leah perked up and leaned forward, having never seen it before. "Take a bite!"

Abigail looked over and grinned. She handed it to Leah first to inspect, and the braided girl did the same thing I did when I first saw it. She bit the rock formation hard, wincing and rubbing her jaw. Handing it back, Abigail brought it to her mouth and bit off a piece like it was hard candy. Little shards fell, but she licked them off her hand and began chewing blissfully. "Taste so gooood."

Gus's voice got our attention as he came over. "Hey, no bringing your own food in."

Abigail grinned at him and waved the amethyst. "Sure, start stocking gemstones for me and I'll buy them." She bit again and Gus cringed.

Leah got her meal and a rather large goblet of wine to go with it, as per her regular order. I gave her a look and then let my eyes go to the wine and back. She got the hint and raised an eyebrow before taking a long, slow gulp of it. "Ahhh…"

It was at that point where I noticed Abigail had stolen the remains of my burger and was hungrily chomping down on it. "H-Hey! That's mine!"

As the night went on I managed to pack away the rest of my fries, which Abigail magically reheated for me half way through, and stole a few bites of other people's dinners as well. Sebastian smoked Sam at pool yet again and they rejoined us for a few hours of good fun. Leah, on her third large goblet of wine now, was looking drunk already. Her cheeks were a dark red and eyes semi glazed over with a half smile on . Sam was the first to leave, saying something about having to wake up early to talk to his dad. Sebastian called it quits a little later, having to catch a ride with Marnie to get back home.

Now with only us left, I felt a little awkward. Abigail was slightly leaning on me, being a bit tipsy. Leah was flat out drunk and was fanning herself despite having the air conditioner vents angled onto her specifically. I felt Abigail stir and then blush, looking over at Leah. "H-hey, that's me…"

"I know," Leah cooed out. "I'm going to rub Kim's next." With that, I felt her shoe lightly move up and down my leg again. "Is it hot in here?"

"I-I think someone has had enough." Abigail almost shrieked.

"Naaaah." Leah leaned forward. "I've been thinking… why don't we just try it?"

"T-try what?" I asked hesitantly.

"You know…" Leah smiled drunkenly at us. "A three way?"

"That's enough!" Abigail stood, face blazing red and sobered up nicely. "Leah, you're going home!"

"Oooh?" Leah grinned sloppily as Abigail literally pulled her from her seat. "So bold! But I want Kim with us if you and I are gonna rock my bed."

"WHOA! Whoa whoa whoa _whoa_!" Abigail looked positively freaked out. "No one is rocking anyone's bed tonight! You're going home, you're going to sleep, and we're never talking about this ever again! Kim! Help me out!"

I shook my head. "Ain't going anywhere near that."

"Fat load of help you are," Abigail grabbed my backpack and slung it over her shoulder. "I'm going to take her to my place for the night. Will you be okay getting home?"

"I'm good," I waved her off. "I have my horse. I could sleep on my way home and be fine. Will _you_ be okay?"

Leah was giggling now, looking at me with hopeful eyes. "Kim, you look hoooooot."

"Y-yeah, I'll be okay." Abigail helped Leah start walking out of the saloon, trying her best to make sure the drunk girl didn't say anything they'd both regret later.

"Well…" I looked around at the empty arcade. "Guess I'll head out then." I had a chunk of positive money on my tab so I just drew a smiley face on my receipt and left a nice tip for Emily. As I stood I tried to sober myself up by stretching out and hopping in place a few times. finally ready, I headed out into the main part of the saloon.

I saw Pam in her usual spot, drunk as usual, making a rather loud conversation with Clint. She noticed me and waved me over. "Hey Kim! C'mere you!"

"Hey Pam, what's up?" I tried my best to smile as she put an arm around me.

"Why didn't you tell me!?"

"Tell you what?" I gave her an odd look.

"You and Penny! Wow, I never knew!"

"M-me and what!?" I looked at her in shock.

Pam laughed loudly, and I suddenly felt eyes on me. It was already bad enough everyone kind of suspected the love triangle I was in already, but adding in Penny would make people start wondering about my morals. "She's never slept over at anyone's house!" Pam informed me loudly. "I knew right away what was going on!"

"Pam, we're just friends." I told her slowly. "Look at me. Friends. Nothing more."

"Sure, sure, kid, I get you." She gave a blatantly obvious wink. "You know what they say, angel on the streets, devil in the sheets!"

"Oh Yoba…" I moved away from her. "I'm going home now." I walked out of the Saloon, feeling everyone's eyes on me as I did so. The night air was still warm, and didn't do much for me as I waited for Okami to come to my call. When he arrived I tried twice to climb up on him before finally walking him over to a raised section lining the greenery on the building and using that to mount him. "Home, Okami. Please."

As my horse started taking me home, I gave a soft sigh. "Hey, Okami?" My horse didn't look back at me, but I saw one of his ears twitch. "You don't think I'm a bad person do you?" He kept walking, so I continued. "I mean… people are starting to think things… About Leah and Abby and me… And now Pam is spreading rumors about Penny and I… What if people think I'm… you know… easy?"

My horse snorted and shook his head, and I felt a little better. "I know, I'm over reacting… but still… I worry. I don't want people to think bad things… and I don't want to _make_ people think bad things… Should I… stay away from the girls for a while? Just so no one thinks I'm just messing around?" My horse stopped walking. "Okami?"

I sat there on his back, just out of town borders. The wind was blowing slightly, teasing my ponytail with each gust. As I looked up at the sky I felt a small tear come to my eye. "I'm not a bad person… I don't mean to get in these situations…I don't… have loose morals…" Heaving a sigh, I wiped my eyes and tried to clear my head. "Come on Kim, you're a little drunk… Don't get like this… You're not in high school anymore… No one is using you… You're a big girl and can handle your love life…" I tried my best to nod to myself. "Okay… Okay, I'm good Okami." My horse started walking again and I stayed silent for a while more.

Trying to keep the memories of all the nasty things said about me back then repressed, I focused on the path ahead of me and the gentle bobbing my vision did as I rode my horse. "Just keep yourself together, Kim… You're good." I bit my lip, unconsciously remembering the morning after with that football player. The look he gave me, the shame I felt walking home, the names the cheerleaders called me once they found out. "Don't think about that… Don't let it bother you…" I tried to listen to my own voice, but Pam's hollering came back to me and I suddenly hugged myself, looking down. "You're a good girl…You would never…"

Leah's drunken offer came back and I shivered, hugging my arms harder. "She didn't mean it like that… breathe, Kim, breathe…" I felt a hiccup come and I closed my eyes tightly. I could only see the saloon and everyone looking at me as I walked out. I heard the cat calls from the other football players, the names, the offers… "I'm not…"

I dismounted Okami at the front of my house and made sure to remove the saddle bags from him, but only tossed them against my door. As I opened it up, I stepped inside to be hit hard with the scent of fresh flowers and what I could only describe as the scent of clean. I looked around at my house in disbelief. The wood floors were mopped and treated, actually shining reflections from my lights above. My rugs were vacuumed and looked fluffier now than I've ever seen them. Even my kitchen was spotless.

I took off my shoes and walked around silently, eyes wide. The Junimo were all inside it seemed, playing and running around on the newly cleaned furniture. Testingly, I touched one of my wooden chairs at the dinner table and felt a light smoothness to it. It had been cleaned and treated, and smelt lightly of pine. A beautiful arrangement of fresh flowers were gathered in a vase I didn't even know I owned on the table, and the scent from them was simply amazing.

As I walked through my house, I saw my bathroom was also cleaned top to bottom as well. The mirror polished, the rugs cleaned and fluffed, and even the shower curtain looked better than before. Finally I made it to my bedroom where I saw Penny laying on my bed. There were piles of clean, folded clothes sitting in my hampers on the floor. I noticed she was wearing one of my pajama tops now, the white ones with ducks quacking all over them. She had found the matching bottoms, which I had assumed lost a month ago. The girl was out cold, laying on her side on top of the covers. Her head rested on the pillow and one of her hands was on top of my _Farming 101_ book.

I didn't want to wake her, but I did feel the need to at least cover her up for the night. My hands tried to carefully move the sheets back for her, but the motion stirred her and she opened her eyes. "Oh… Kim…" She spoke softly, still mostly asleep. "I'm sorry, I must have fallen asleep…"

"N-no, don't worry… I… thank you."

Penny blinked a few times before smiling. "I enjoy cleaning, don't mention it. Thank you for letting me stay tonight…" Rubbing her eyes, she seemed to be waking up more. "I hope Mother didn't give you any trouble?" Her words made me lose my smile and she noticed at once. "Hey, did something happen? Kim? Are you crying?"

"N-no," I wiped my eyes a few times. "J-just, you know, alcohol… and stuff…"

Penny didn't buy it, and I could tell. "What happened?"

"Nothing, really… Just…" I felt myself start to tear up again. "Just bad memories."

Penny looked at my fondly and sat up, gently patting the spot next to her. "Let me listen to you this time." I couldn't say no to that, and I really wanted to talk right now.

I unloaded everything at once, starting with Leah and Abigail, how I felt, the burden of picking one or accepting Leah's offer. I told her about my first time having sex, how it affected me and the rest of my time in school. I then kept on, telling her about Pam's words and how it hit me wrong. Finally I ended with a pitiful look at her and the question I had asked myself several times even though I never wanted to. "Am I a whore?"

"No," Penny told me softly, holding my hand. "No, Kim, you are human. You love, and that's wonderful. I understand it is really hard on you right now, but from what you told me, they both understand you. I think you need to trust in them and how they feel. Don't bottle things inside until they explode like this… Talk to them, and try to work it out. Even if you do that poly thing, it doesn't mean you're a bad person. It means you just… have so much love to give." She moved her free hand to tilt my chin towards her. "And that is wonderful, Kim. You are amazing. You are not a whore. Okay?"

I nodded softly, feeling a rush of relief was over me. "Okay…Thank you. I needed that… so bad."

"You're welcome." She pet my hand. "Now, why don't you get a nice hot shower? I'll make you some tea and bring you a nice fluffy towel?"

"… I would like that very much."


	17. Chapter 17

I woke up a little earlier than normal, lured into the realm of the living by a scent that always seemed to get me going. The rich, fragrant smell of my usual coffee was invading my senses and I slowly sat up in bed to rub my eyes. I was a little confused at first, but then remembered I had a guest over. Penny must have gotten up already… despite the sun not even really breaking the mountain ridges yet. As I got out of bed, I gave a long stretch backwards and then reached down to touch my toes. Penny chose that moment to peek her head into my room and smile a good morning at me.

 **Stardust XVII**

 **By: Satashi**

"I wasn't too early, I see?" She asked teasingly.

"No, right on time." I hopped a few times on my toes to get my blood pumping. "Don't mind me, morning ritual."

Penny was still smiling, leaning against the doorframe now. "I hope that includes a nice breakfast before you get to work?"

I almost faltered. "Did you cook for me?" A confirming nod came and I felt a little overwhelmed. "First you clean my entire house and then you cook? Wow, you should come over more often!"

"I feel intrusive, are you sure you don't mind?" She looked down at herself, still in my pajamas. "I even had to borrow some clothes after mine had that cleaner spilled on it…"

"Penny, girl, I haven't folded my laundry once since I moved here. You can wear anything you want." She looked pleased at that and told me to come get some food once I got ready for the day. When I was alone again I rooted through my now clean and awesome smelling clothes to grab some jean shorts and my baggy Pusheen tank top. The jean shorts came one easily with minimal hopping and tugging, making me happy. Tight shorts were always a pain to put on, but I had lost a bit of weight since I moved here. After latching my bra and spinning it around, I put my arms through and adjusted. Covering it with a shirt, I pulled my hair through and brushed it quickly. Once my ponytail was in place, I socked my feet and headed out into the main area of my house.

Penny was just plating a full breakfast for two and made me sit down and wait on her instead of helping. Before long I had the plate put in front of me along with a glass of water, a mug of coffee, cream and sugar set to be used, and knife and fork at the ready. Two medium sized heart shaped pancakes were in front of me, paired with some eggs, sausage, and bacon. On a separate side plate I had two thick cuts of homemade French toast as well. "Wow…"

"You need your energy if you are going to work a farm, right?"

I didn't have the heart to tell her I was going to primarily work in the afternoon because I needed to run errands first, so I just nodded. "And breakfast _is_ the most important meal of the day." I looked over at her as she got her own plate and suddenly realized not a single pan was still on the stove. She had not only done all of this, but cleaned up as she went and… _somehow_ dried them all and put up in the moments I was admiring the food. Maybe she had some type of magic as well?

After completely demolishing my breakfast, and telling her a dozen times how yummy it was, I was finally ready to start my day. My friend insisted on me going out already while she 'finished up my house' before going home as well. I didn't really want to have her do anything more for me, as I already felt bad enough as it was, but she did insist that she couldn't very well go home at six in the morning without invoking Pam's hung over wrath. Reluctantly I agreed and took to my farm.

First on my list was inspecting my tools. Just as I expected, I saw tiny little cracks through all of them. At first I wanted to see if I could mend the wood myself through magic, but decided against it. I needed better tools anyway, and I had money from the market earlier. Looks like I would need to hit up Robin again. This time, though, I was more informed and knowledgeable. I needed something better suited for my needs, and that meant a visit to Leah. She was the only left handed person I knew, so she probably knew all sorts of tricks to getting things more balanced towards my preference. She would have to wait, though. The girl normally slept in till at least past nine or ten, and considering how wasted she was the night before...

My second option was seeding during the morning and going in the afternoon. With that, I grabbed the supplies from yesterday, a drawing of my plans, and set to it. Looks like my morning was going to be on the fields after all. As I worked, I put my mana into the soil to give each seed the chance to take root and prepare to grow. Normally I would start to feel the strain after a few hours, but today I was unusually full. The heavy meal from last night and the one this morning seemed to really perk me up, and I managed to get my entire planting done and enhanced a little before ten. Still plenty of time before lunch.

As I wiped the sweat from my brow, I looked up at the sun with a mixture of both love and hate. When the light was directly on my skin, I could almost feel my internal battery recharging itself. It was the same with water lately, and now food. It seemed that things that generally made plants grow now influenced me as well. On the opposite side of things, I preferred soda over water and the sun was still hated as it was too hot for my liking.

Now with the day's work out of the way, I put my tools up and whistled for my horse. Okami came to my call at once and I hopped up and onto him almost before he came to a stop. "Leah's house, buddy." I asked of him. We took off at once, galloping across the fields and over towards my neighbors. Marnie's farm was passed and the little cottage by the river came into view. The lights were off, but I went up to the door anyway to knock. After a second attempt, I leaned over to peek into a window, seeing nothing on the inside moving. "Guess she's not home yet…" I spoke aloud.

I left a little message on the chalk board next to her door, which was now decorated in flowers and sunshine. "Guess I'll just walk around a bit and head back home…" I gave Okami a few pets and let him roam around on his own. I always did enjoy the Cindersnap forest. It was lush and green in summer, and I was really looking forward to seeing it once all the trees change colors in the Fall.

As I walked through the trees, I enjoyed the cooler area and the small splotches of light that did manage to make it through the canopy. I made my way inwards to find that tree stump I met Penny on a while back in hopes of a nice little relaxing moment. When I was finally recalling the scenery, I heard voices coming a little farther up ahead. Curiously, I moved towards them and saw Rasmodius and Caroline talking in the clearing. I was about to call out to them, but the woman's words made me stop instantly and move behind a tree to hide.

"I _know_ you think it's a good idea, Rasmodius, but I just… don't want Abigail over here that much. Pierre still has lingering doubts!"

"I fail to see the problem, Caroline." The Wizard motioned helplessly. "It's been nineteen years since then, and I have never once gone back on my promise. You know as well as I do that we made the right choice. I am not a father figure; she would and _did_ grow up to be a wonderful woman with you two. I would have messed up, and she deserves better. _You_ deserved better."

"I know, and I'm sorry to ask this… it's just… Lately with her magic… her dying her hair purple-"

"I had nothing to do with that choice," Rasmodius interrupted Caroline. "That's just her choice. No different than the blue, pink, or orange hair she had before."

"I know that, but she keeps it purple now, and it's secretly driving Pierre mad. I think he still…suspects Abigail isn't his daughter."

"Well she _isn't_ his daughter," Rasmodius sighed. "She's mine."

I pressed my back up against the tree and covered my mouth with a hand, eyes wide. ' _Oh crap!_ ' I mentally screamed, unsure what to think. ' _No, no I misunderstood!_ '

"Rasmodius," Caroline picked back up. "I know how you feel, but please do this for me?"

"How I feel? How I feel, Caroline? How about meeting someone I truly cared for, only to have her choose someone else. Then finding out she has your child growing inside of her, and giving everything up so she can be happy? Watching your daughter live her life with no understanding or clue of her true origins. Then… Then, Caroline, teaching her to use her magic to make her realize her dreams, all while never once breaking a promise or even letting an inkling of the truth come out, then be asked to do even more?"

Caroline stayed silent, but I could hear my heart pounding in my chest. Pierre wasn't Abigail's father, and as far as I could tell, only three people knew this now. I peeked carefully around the tree and saw the two embracing each other and talking so softly I could no longer hear. I felt like I needed to get away and clear my head. Nothing good would come out of them knowing I knew. Worst case scenario I would be pressured into promising not to tell and I don't think I could live with myself knowing that.

As I stepped back, I felt my boot heel sink into some mud and slide out from under me. I fell backwards quickly but collected myself almost as soon as the feeling of falling hit me. _'Catch me!_ ' I screamed silently. My landing was soft, cushioned by the massive amounts of grass and flowers that sprung up to make me stop before I hit the ground. ' _Thank you._ ' I gave the grass a pat and turned, jogging at first to be careful and then full blown sprinting once I was far enough away.

Just as soon as I broke the tree line I whistled for Okami. I saw him around Leah's cottage and bent over to catch my breath, hands on my knees. "So what if you tell her? What then?"

I spun around and saw the Wizard himself standing before me, eyes glaring down and pretty serious. "I.. have no idea what you mean?" Smooth, Kim. Really smooth.

"I'll offer you once chance." He held up a finger. "What do you want for your silence?" I shook my head at him but he kept going. "I have a special fruit that will almost double your magic capacity. I can transmute iron into gold, and gold into iridium. This can make you wealthy beyond your dreams."

"You… You can't _buy_ me!" I was suddenly angry. My morals weren't so low as to be bought. Penny had instilled that courage into me just the other night. I was better than that, and backing down from it would not only just insult myself, but the trust my friends had put into me as well. "Abigail was lucky not to have someone like you as her father. She deserves the _truth_."

"And what would the _truth_ do for her, girl!?" He held up his hand and Okami stopped walking towards me, suddenly rearing back on his hind legs and neighing loudly. "What shred of good will it do!? It will only cause conflict in her family, make her distrust her parents, make her close herself off to others, make her question her abilities, and stop her from learning how to use them! Is that what you want for her!?"

"Absolutely not!" I shouted back at him, letting my own magic come forth. Grass grew thick around me and over to Okami, who was now feeling at peace from it. "But asking me to lie to her? To _deceive_ her? I will not do that. I will _not_ lie to someone I care about!"

"Do you intend to fight me, girl?" He asked sternly.

I nodded at him, clenching my fist and mentally preparing myself for the pain that I was about to experience. I couldn't hurt him, and we both knew it. Heck, I couldn't hurt him even if he didn't have powers. But That wasn't going to stop me from-

"Forget." He popped my forehead before I could move.

Falling to my knees, I blinked a few times slowly. "I…."

"Kim!" Rasmodius smiled down at me. "Look at you, practicing your magic. Good, good, the valley is looking great thanks to you."

"I… Yeah?" He helped me stand and I looked over behind me, where the grass was flourishing and my horse was grazing. "I… got better… didn't I?"

"Yes, you have." He patted me on the back. "But don't press yourself, okay? Maybe you should head on home."

"I'll… just go home?" I took a few stumbling steps to my horse. "Why… was I out here?"

"Weren't you practicing?" I looked at the ground again, trying desperately to grab onto a weird feeling that was avoiding me. "Kim, you're pressing yourself again." He held up a stern finger. "I warned you. Go home and rest. Don't work anymore today. Understand?"

"Yeah…" I shook my head, trying to clear the fog that was hovering around me. "I'll just do that… Come on, Okami." I mounted him and began walking towards Leah's house. "I was… Going to ask Leah to help with my tools… That's right…" I was being rather silly today.

Approaching the house, I looked over to it. The lights were off, but I went up to the door anyway to knock. After a second attempt, I leaned over to peek into a window, seeing nothing on the inside moving. "Guess she's not home yet…" I spoke aloud. I went to leave her a message on her new chalkboard, but stopped when I saw I already had one on it. "De Ja Vu…" I left another little message on it, and made a cute note about remembering to erase the older ones. With that, I hopped back on Okami and rode into town.

I seemed to want to head towards Pierre's shop and walked in the door after letting Okami roam around. "Afternoon!" I called out as I came in.

"Ah, Kim!" Pierre smiled at me. "Back again so soon? What can I do for you?"

"Not much really." I looked over his stock, even though I knew it by heart. "I was just around in town and thought I'd swing by. Is Abigail and Leah still here?"

"Upstairs." He pointed behind himself. "You know the way."

"Yup yup!" I moved around the counter and to the door leading back. After taking the stairs two at a time I knocked a small rhythm on Abigail's door. "It's me!" I called out, peeking my head in. I saw Abigail sitting on the floor playing her Super Nintendo while Leah was still in bed, face down. "How's it going girls?"

"I've been up for a while," Abigail replied, eyes focused on the screen. "Leah over there is still hung over."

"Leemeelone…" Leah muttered into the pillow, trying to pull it closer around her ears.

"She's been like that all morning. And afternoon."

Leah groaned again. "Artists wake up when their trade calls…"

Sitting next to Abigail, I picked up the spare controller and hit the start button so I could join in on her run-and-gun experience. "She sleeps in really late anyway, so it's no wonder she's even worse when hung over." I heard the girl groan out behind me and roll over to face the other direction. "Did you manage to get any sleep?"

Abigail's eyes were a little bloodshot, even from this distance. "A few hours. We talked way into the night. I don't think we actually slept until about three in the morning."

I whistled at that, then immediately regretted it when Leah groaned out in pain again."What did you talk about?"

"Stuff." She dodged my question. I hummed and dodged a bullet that I had planned on taking for her. Abigail's little character spun around in a death animation and she eyed me sideways. "Yeah, that stuff."

"I hope you're closer than I am at a solution, because it still keeps me up some nights."

Abigail paused the game and sighed. "I have one solution as of right now."

"What is that?" I looked at her.

"Pick me." Her words made Leah groan again and lamely try to swat at her friend blindly. "I know, I know." She leaned back against the bed and reluctantly accepted Leah rolling back over and draping an arm around the girl in her best attempt to give her a hug. "I just want to say she's mine."

 _She's mine._

I felt a sudden pain in my head, so much so that I gasped out and held a hand to my forehead. "Ow…"

"You okay there?" Abigail leaned over to me. "Kim?"

"Huh? Yeah, I just…" My voice was shaking, and I felt a rage deep inside of me that I couldn't explain. "I dunno, I'm…" A cough came out and I realized that my hands were clentched. Now Leah was up as well, looking over at me with a concerned gaze. "I..."

"Hey, it's okay," Leah moved to put a hand on me shoulder. "If you need to say something, just say it. We're here."

Abigail nodded along with her and suddenly I felt like I wanted to scream. My head was pounding with each heartbeat and I was so… so _mad_. "I feel like there's something I need to say, but I can't remember it." They each seemed to doubt that. "No, _really_! Something important. Something _very_ important!"

"Hey, hey, shhhh…" Leah held a hand to her temple and I settled myself as best I could. "Okay, think for a moment. What do you need to say?"

"I don't know!" I snapped at once. Leah winced at the tone and I did too. All at once I felt something overwhelming come over me and then touched my cheeks to find tears coming down them. "Wh…what?"

"Okay," Abigail spoke up. "Kim, you need to take a breath. Look at me." I did so and she softened her expression. "It's okay, but we're worried now. Can we help?"

The more I tried to think, the more my mind hazed over. I felt like I needed to say something, to get something out, but nothing came. It was infuriating enough on its own, but whatever was eluding me was pissing me off to the point where I just wanted to howl in frustration. "I don't know," I finally sighed out. "I'm sorry, I'm acting weird and moody."

"Moon cycle?" Leah asked curiously.

I shook my head. "No, just finished. I'm…" I heaved out yet another sigh. "I'm sorry. Again." Abigail gave me a hug and it honestly upset me more than comforted me at the moment. I stayed through it and then got one from Leah, which felt encouraging. "Abigail, I think it was something to do with you." Even though I didn't know what, saying the words eased the stress tremendously.

"Oh great," The girl laughed at that.

At that moment a soft knock came on the door and Caroline poked her head in "Abigail, you left your stuff downstairs." She held up a plastic shopping bag. "Oh hello Kim, how are you today?" I opened my mouth to say something, but it hung in my throat.

 _Liar!_

"Thanks mom." Abigail got the bag and came back over to us. Caroline left the room and the purple haired girl took out a bottle of red hair dye.

"Red?" Leah looked impressed.

"Not quite your brownish red, but thought red might be nice. I'm still debating it. For once Mom was happy that I was going to change again."

"Hides the evidence," I muttered.

"Hides what?" Abigail looked over at me curiously.

"Huh?" I blinked. "Oh, um… Sorry, I don't know what that was."

Leah reached out and pulled me towards her, so I leaned against the bed between her legs. She started stroking my ponytail and I immediately felt a little better. Abigail looked a little jealous, but kept it to herself. "Anyway," The girl went on, looking at the dye. "My hair has been acting really weird lately. I thought I'd try and fix it."

"Weird how?" Leah pondered.

Abigail leaned back against the bed as well. "Honestly? It's really weird. Normally I dye my hair every month or so, but lately it's been _growing_ this color."

Leah looked at her friend skeptically. "Abby, your hair doesn't grow purple. It's brown."

"Brown!?" I asked triumphantly.

Abigail rolled her eyes. "Thanks Leah, I was teasing her about not knowing my real hair color." The artist looked a little sheepish, but shrugged it off. "For real, it's growing purple."

"Really?" I asked, looking at her. For some reason I _really_ wanted to confirm this. "Prove it."

"Prove it? How?" Abigail looked at me.

"I need to know."

Leah looked at me and then to Abigail. "How can she prove something like that?"

"I don't know! Just please?" I met Abigail's eyes. "I just really need to know."

The purple haired girl looked at me for a long time before her face slowly started to turn red. "Ugh, am I really going to do this?" She stood and then put her feet on either side of me. "Leah, look away."

"Don't have to tell me twice." She turned her head and closed her eyes.

I blinked. "What are you going to-" I saw her begin to undo her belt buckle. "Uhm, Abby? Are you-" She looked away with a very dark blush and pulled the tip of her pants down a little for me. "I see! I SEE!" I covered my face with both hands. "Oh my Yoba, _really_? I mean _really!?_ "

"You asked." Abigail kept her gaze averted as she redid her buckle.

"Was it purple?" Leah asked me. I nodded frantically, not daring to look at anyone ever again. "Purple hair! Whoa girl, you're committed!"

"It grows that way!" Abigail retorted, plopping down next to Leah on the bed now. "I haven't dyed my hair in… six months now? And definitely not _there_."

"Pssst, Abby." Leah whispered to her. "Look at her ears."

"They're so _red_!" Abigail realized. "That's so funny!"

I hugged my knees and buried my face as deep into them as I could. "Topic change."

"Anyway, you seem better now." Leah stood up and stretched. "My headache is fading and I think I'll head on out. I need to start working sooner or later."

"Oh, that reminds me." I stood with her help. "Can you possibly design some tool handles that are better suited for a leftie?"

Abigail looked at me curiously. "Isn't that basically the same but held from the other side?"

Leah put a hand on her hip. "Totally not. It's like saying you can bat left handed if you just turn the other direction. But I can see what I can do. Shouldn't be hard. I'm assuming you want blueprints for Robin?"

"Please."

"I can't promise anything, but I can at least draw something and put notes on it."

Abigail stood along with us. "I'm going to head out too, I'd like to go visit Rasmodius."

I felt like I should say something, but my headache suddenly spiked. Holding one hand to my forehead, I gave a soft groan. They both noticed and before I could really help it, I got a group hug. "I'll be okay, really." I returned the hug on both of them. "Mmn… I could get used to this, though." It felt really comforting to have two people hug on you, and I made sure to enjoy it to the fullest before they pulled back.

"I bet," Leah agreed, leaning over to kiss my forehead. She looked over at Abigail and smiled at her. "Go ahead, you look like you wanted to." Abigail gave a light pout, but still leaned over to kiss my other temple. "Looks like you'll get better at twice the rate like this," Leah teased me.

"I don't mind that at all. Come on then, Autobots roll out." My comment made Abigail snicker and Leah roll her eyes. Together we all three left the house, with only slight protesting from Caroline when she learned where we were heading. Luckily Abigail was in no mood to argue, so we got out of there before it could progress into anything more than just disapproval.

I whistled to Okami and asked him to head on home ahead of myself. Although my friends were insisting on me riding him instead of walking, I drew the line there. _I_ had a little headache, and _Leah_ was hung over. Walking would be just fine for all three of us. Once we arrived at Leah's cottage we split up with Abigail so she could continue over to the Wizard's Tower and get some magical training.

Leah paused at the door to read her messages and shook her head with a light chuckle. "You dork, you don't have to leave me two separate messages." She grabbed the eraser nearby and cleared it. "Give me time to get home first."

"You didn't erase my other one from yesterday." I teased her back.

"Yesterday? Did you seriously come home the long way when you knew I was going to be staying with Abby?"

I wanted to question when Leah started calling Abigail by the short version of her name, but the question was more curious at the moment. "No, I went straight home. Penny was staying over to avoid Pam, and then she made me breakfast this morning…" I was starting to really become confused now. "And… And this morning I was doing my crops before…" The pain was coming back again.

"Before?" Leah was turning on the lights to her cottage now and looking for drawing materials.

"Before… I… practiced my magic… I think?"

"Are you sure you're not hung over too?" Leah looked at me playfully but then came over when she saw that I was really concerned. "Kim? Seriously girl, what's going on here? Want some headache medicine?"

"Yes, please." I sat down at her table and put my face in my hands. "When did I write that message? I really don't have any clue about it now that I think on it…" I was feeling mad again, like something was going on that was eating away at me but couldn't be seen.

"Hey, Kim?" Leah leaned over and rested her forehead against mine when I looked up. "You're making me worry… Can you not tell me what is causing this?"

"I don't know," I answered honestly. She kept her eyes on mine for the longest time before giving a soft sigh. "I promise Leah, I just feel weird…"

"I know, I believe you." She pulled back slowly and gave me some pills along with a cup of water. "For now, just try and let it be. It'll come to you." She sat by me and tried to smile. "Okay, let's draw you some leftie tools."

After about two hours of designing and me holding different things to show how I swung my tools, I had rough designs and notes to give Robin for my new handles. Although Leah offered to make them for free, we both knew that she was more artistic than practical. She did insist on going with me to Robin's shop, though, and I didn't really have the heart to deny her that.

On the way, I lead her over to where Rasmodius had found me earlier and looked at my handiwork. The area was a lush green, grass thick and flowers blooming uncontrollably is a small area. "Wow, what happened here?" Leah asked, eyes wide. She followed the trail of grass that lead out from the small circle "I don't recall this patch being here. Maybe the rain made it grow all funny?"

"It was me," I stated pretty proudly. "I was practicing apparently." I nodded to myself.

"Apparently?" Leah chuckled at me. "Did you forget you were practicing?"

"I…" Pausing, I suddenly realized that I don't even remember doing it. I just saw the grass where Rasmodius found me and thought that… "Wait, why was I found?" I asked aloud, as if the thought had just occurred to me. Looking over at Leah, I realized that my day was getting a lot worse than it had started out as. "Leah, why was I found here?"

"I… don't know?" She came back to me and rubbed my shoulder when the pain in my head came back hard enough to make me close one eye. "Kim, did something happen to you?"

"I… I think so." I tried to fight the pain and the sudden ringing in my left ear. "I was here… I… I wasn't practicing…" The pain was getting more intense and my left ear started to go deaf. "I was.. arguing…"

"Kim! HEY!" Leah shook me and the ringing faded. "Your nose!" She was quickly scrambling through her backpack and pulled out a handkerchief. Before I could gather myself, she shoved it on my face. Looking down, I realized that I had blood trickling all down my chest and soaking into my bra.

"Crap…" I held the cloth closer to my nose and tried to make sure it didn't get on my tank top before finally resorting to taking it off and giving it to Leah. We were more than alone out here and she had seen me in much more provocative things anyway. Right now, though, my nose was bleeding more than even when Molly bum rushed my face with a volleyball. "I feel dizzy."

"Sit." Leah ordered of me. I obeyed at once and rested in the lush grass I had made earlier. "This is getting out of hand, I think we need to go to Harvey."

Shaking my head, I tried to plug my nose as best as possible. "No, I think this is something else. This is wrong. Why was I here, and why can't I remember it? I don't practice like this. Why did I not think about that!?"

"Kim, calm down." Leah started stroking my back.

"Leah, something happened. I don't know what it was, but this is really weird… I'd like to get Abigail, I feel like it has to do with her."

My friend looked like she wanted to do anything rather than to help me with what appeared to be causing me pain and a nosebleed. After she took a deep breath, she nodded and helped me to my feet. "Is it still bleeding?"

I moved the cloth and let her watch. I was sure my entire nose and mouth area was smeared in blood by now, but after getting an approving look at least I knew I was okay. She lead me to the river first so I could wash up and redress myself. After that, we headed over to the nearby tower and knocked. When we received no answer we tried again and again.

"Figures." I muttered. "Now what…?"

"Where do they train at?"

"Around here, or in the forest… but the forest wouldn't be good if they're trying to do fire things, so…" I paused. "My farm? There is an open area there and I did offer it to her before."

"Let's go then." Leah took my hand and lead me along the way. I was amazed at her hands sometimes. Even though she wasn't a fighter or a farmer, she had rough hands. She was strong and dexterous, not to mention soft and delicate at the same time… When she wasn't tackling people of course. Much better than me. "What are you thinking about?"

"Just glad to have you with me. Not sure why."

"Someone has to protect your scrawny butt." She was joking, but it _was_ very true. I wasn't a fighter in the slightest. This fact kept coming back to me as we made our way to my house. The best I could do would be to grow some….

"Leah." I stopped walking and pulled on her hand to make her pause as well. "I can't get it out of my head. I can't fight. I would only be able to grow some plants."

"So? It's okay, nobody cares about that. I can't really fight either."

"No, I mean I would _grow plants._ Flowers, grass, that kind of thing! It's all I can do!" Turning, I pointed to the area where we were just at. "Over there. That patch of grass. Why would I do that? It makes no sense. Unless…"

Leah caught on, eyes widening. "Unless you were fighting…."

"…And something happened to my head."

"…That made you forget." Leah started pulling on my hand. "And you're worried about Abigail, who protects you."

"Because she's always the one who helps, she might have been hurt too and she doesn't know it yet!" We began running now, almost at my farm.

"But how long ago could it have happened?" Leah asked around her hard breathing. "She was with me all night!"

"I don't know…" When we made it to my property line I saw not only Abigail and Rasmodius, but also a small herd of my Junimo friends. "That can't be good…" We stopped running and the magical creatures all swarmed around me, hopping around and making concerned noises. "Abigail, come here please." I asked at once.

Abigail looked at me oddly, but did as requested. "Hey Kim, what's up? You look really tired now."

"Are you okay?" I had to watch my step getting to her so I wouldn't crush my friends. "Do you have any bruises anywhere? Cuts, scrapes, anything?"

The girl raised an eyebrow at me. "Noooo?" Her gaze turned to Leah. "Are you keeping an eye on her?"

"I'm fine!" I insisted. "Well, not fine, but I'm worried."

Rasmodius' voice came over to us. "Is something going on?"

"Kim has been acting weird today." Abigail revealed. "I think she got bonked on the head one too many times.

 _Forget._

I looked down at my feet, seeing the Junimo all trying to hug me. A few were making their normal cute sounds, but this time they sounded concerned, even panicked. As they moved around me, I felt a strange sense of encouragement. My body started to feel warm and I realized it was as if I was recharging my internal mana battery. The Junimo were sharing their magic with me and it was helping my headache so much.

Then it hit me. As Rasmodius tried to wave the notion of my needing help off, I remembered everything. The rage came back, now defined. "How… How _dare_ you!?" I stepped forward, my little friends moving with me. Rasmodius looked at me oddly. "Messing with my memories…" I was seething now, a feeling I most certainly was not used to. "You messed with my _memories_!"

"Kim?" Leah put her hand on my shoulder again. "What's going on?"

Rasmodius tried talking before me. "It seems Kim has some kind of amnesia-"

"Don't even." I growled. "The Junimo are all here. They helped me remember. You're outnumbered."

Abigail stood next to me and tried to calm me down. "Kim, maybe you can explain?"

"I think he needs to explain." I pointed at the wizard. "And don't try to back out of this. You are literally surrounded right now. I can see them. Now, tell them what you did to me and why."

"What he…did?" Abigail looked from me to him a few times. "What?"

Leah took out the blood stained handkerchief from her pocket and looked at it before turning to Rasmodius. "Her headaches, and a massive nose bleed… She was in a lot of pain earlier…"

The man looked at us before sighing. "Guess it would happen sooner or later… But later and under different circumstances would have been better." He looked over at Abigail. "Abigail. There's something you should know."

The process didn't take long at all. A few short sentences and the bomb was dropped. My friend was speechless, standing there with wide eyes. She was deathly quiet, almost dazed. After a few moments she looked over at me and then scowled. "And Kim found out, so you tried to hide it? By… By altering her memories and putting her in pain?"

"It was the best option. If she wasn't so…foolish… then there would have been no pain." Abigail opened her mouth, hesitated, and closed it. A few steps were taken, then she turned and walked back. Finally she took a breath to speak again but the words just wouldn't come out. Then, she just turned and walked away. "I hope you're pleased with yourself," Rasmodius stated as he walked away from us. "You caused this, girl. I hope you're prepared to deal with the results."

"I hope you are too." I walked on, pulling Leah with me until I was next to Abigail. We walked in silence a while until we made it to my house. Abigail hesitated there, but I put a hand on my back to encourage her to go inside.

After a while of silence, the girl sat on my couch and leaned forward , putting her face into her hands. "What do you even say?" She asked aloud.

"I don't know," Leah responded. "How do you feel?"

"Betrayed? Angry?" Abigail shook her head. "I mean… I get it. Rasmodius isn't exactly a father figure or anything, and I'd much rather grow up where I did than in that tower. But if I knew, would it have mattered? If I could have found out I had mana way earlier in life, would I be a really popular adventurer now? What did I miss out on? How would I be right now? If I had just _known_ , then…" She leaned back into the couch and crossed her arms. "No harm would have come out of me knowing. I would still have lived at home. I would call Pierre my dad, I…. Hell, does he even know? Probably not. So that means Mom cheated on him?"

I looked down at my thumbs and leaned over on the couch. "From what I gathered, it was right before Caroline and Pierre really got together, so maybe it was a fling before it was official."

"So a love triangle." Abigail groaned. "Great. Just great." Leah and I shared a look. "Is that going to be us? Is this where we're headed?" She motioned to all three of us. "In nineteen years we'll have an adopted daughter and tell her we're not really sure which one is her mother because we could never solve the problem of who's dating whom?"

Leah shook her head. "It won't be like that, we're a little different."

"How so? Just because we can't get pregnant like this… It's the same thing?"

I looked up at that. "I don't think so." Abigail turned to me and I saw the pain and confusion clear on her face. "We're open about this. We talk about it. We're trying to do something about it. I'm not ever going to lie to you. Abigail, I really like you. A lot. And I like Leah too, also a lot. I don't prefer one over the other, and I know this is causing problems. But I really want you to know… I am being honest with you."

Abigail rubbed her eyes. "I'm sorry, it's just…" She sniffed and shook her head. "I am _not_ going to cry." She took a few breaths to calm herself and made true on her promise. "I just can't help but feel like I'm doing the same thing…"

Leah raised her hands. "Hey, we're really not. Honesty is the key thing to this, I think. As long as we don't hide things, it can work."

"Have you done this before?" Abigail asked desperately.

Leah looked unsure at first, but then sighed. "Honesty." She met our gazes in turn. "A poly relationship? No. But Kel liked others… seeing me. Doing things. I put that aside because at the moment I loved him and nothing else mattered. Although it was a different situation, I think I can truly love Kim, and can accept that from you as well because unlike back then, you can really love her too. If we have these feelings, then it can work."

"Kim?" Abigail looked at me now. "I was lied to for nineteen years about something my family couldn't even solve. What do you think about us right now, and how are we any different?"

Being put on the spot was putting it lightly. "Well… I think what they did was wrong. It doesn't matter if Rasmodius is your biological father, because Pierre raised you. He is your dad. Lying isn't ever worth it, and this started because I refused to lie to you. As for us…" I had to say something, and I was really scared of what it was. "I'd… like to try it. I mean… we kind of already are?" I tried to offer her a smile.

Abigail looked down again for a long moment before standing and starting to pace. Finally she took a breath and sighed out. "Okay. Thank you for being honest with me… Glad to know some people can." Turning, she put her hands on the windowsill and looked outside. "If my best friends and potential girlfriend can be so honest with me, why couldn't my mother?" She rested her forehead against the glass and closed her eyes. "Whoa boy… I really don't want to go home right now."

"Want to stay here?" I offered at once.

"Thanks but I think I'll pass." Abigail gave me a sad smile. "Right now I'm a little emotionally distraught and I don't think I can handle you right now Kim." I must have looked hurt because she went on to make sure I understood. "Don't get me wrong, I'd love to spend the night with you, it's just… I have enough emotions right now than to have to worry about if I should try and touch or kiss you." I blushed lightly, but nodded. I decided to keep any reply to myself, as to not embarrass or upset her any.

"You can stay with me?" Leah offered next. "It won't be weird, we don't have to talk about anything like last night. We can just hang out as friends until you are ready to go home again."

"Thanks." Abigail smiled at her. "Maybe a day or two?"

"Or three." Leah agreed.

"Well then…" Abigail sighed once more and went back to looking out the window. Her phone rang and after looking at it, put it on silent. "I don't know how long it will be until I can even speak to her…."


	18. Chapter 18

I wasn't surprised when I saw Abigail walking toward my house as the sun broke over the mountains. She had been coming over for quite a while now to work the fields with me all day. After avoiding her house for almost a solid week, she finally went home to find a… less than pleasant atmosphere. Although luckily everything was fine between herself and her dad, Caroline was a different story. I hated it for the girl, but it was unavoidable at some point in Abigail's life. At least the marriage was still there, if just a bit shaky. All in all, it meant Abigail looking to progress her own life than anything else.

 **Stardust XVIII**

 **By: Satashi**

"Good morning," Abigail greeted as she came into the house. "Wow what's that smell?"

I leaned back in my chair and smiled at her. "That is my new maid cooking for me!"

"Maid!?" Abigail came over to look in the kitchen where Penny was very happily cooking a massive breakfast. "Oh, hi there Penny!...Cooking?" She looked a little skeptical all of a sudden.

Penny glanced over at her with a slight disappointed look. "Good morning Abigail. Don't worry, I've been practicing a whole lot lately." She smiled. "Kim told me you would probably come by, so I made enough for you too."

Abigail sat down next to me and raised an eyebrow. "Penny stays over on Fridays," I told her before she could come up with anything on her own. "And after me denying her several times, she finally talked me into letting her just take on a overnight maid job in return for letting her stay. I gave her permission to use my farm anytime she needed as payment and refused to let her clean my place unless she actually took things from the fields."

"Sounds… complicated." Abigail smiled lightly.

With a giggle, I waved it off. "We settled it out. I still think I come up way ahead, but that's how it is. This is the… third week?"

"Fourth I think?" Penny asked curiously. As she thought, her hands went on auto pilot. Before long Abigail and I both had a large plate of food and Penny sat down with us as well. We ate slowly, talking randomly about the week's events, what was going on in town currently, how the weather was actually cold at night now, and the upcoming Jellyfish event that the whole town gathered for. It would be my first time, and was pretty excited to see it.

When breakfast was over, Penny shooed us out of the house and we got to work. My new cherry wood tools were still super smooth, and the blades at the tips were a very refined steel. The tip of my hoe was lined with iridium, and sliced through even hard clay with only one or two swings. As we worked, I explained the few tips and tricks I knew to Abigail so she could properly work alongside me. Granted, I wasn't really a pro at farming yet, but I knew enough to really set her on her way.

As the morning progressed, we managed to start seeing what our hard work was actually doing. I now had plots clearly defined and lined with rows ready to be planted. An old well was painstakingly fixed up by Robin, allowing me to water my crops by hand a lot faster and easier. Almost half my farmland looked like it was in full function again, and with the constant practice of my magic, I just knew I could grow and harvest just like my Grandpa did back when he was here.

It was really hard to believe that I had already been here for around seven and a half months. It seemed like just the other day I was in this very field, meeting Abigail for the first time. The memory made me laugh, calling her attention. "What's so funny?" She asked me, wiping sweat from her face.

"Just this." I motioned around. "We met here, you were swinging a sword around and cut my nose!" I tapped my nose and she looked positively flustered. "Back then I was terrified of all this… My field was a wreck, I had no money, I didn't know anyone, and I was really questioning that little cabin I call home. Now…" I looked around again. "You're here with me, I have half this place working again, I've met so many people, and heck Robin's replaced so much wood in my house I'm not sure it's the same place anymore."

"Yeah…" Abigail leaned against her shovel and thought about it. "Even me back then… I was rash and very impulsive… I couldn't even gather the courage to step foot inside the mines, let alone join the guild. Then I came across you, and lied my ass off. I got us in serious trouble and yet…" She smiled over at me. "You never really called me out on it. You just told me to keep going and not to give up. In fact, we made a promise then!" She looked as if she just remembered it, and truthfully I had forgotten as well.

"You'll be a well known adventurer and I'll be a knowledgeable farmer." I spoke it aloud. "Now here we are. You're a mage, pretty powerful, have been trained, and are so strong you even get punished pretty severely for stepping out of line."

"But still really weak compared to others. I'm hardly valuable yet. But you, look at this place." she motioned around now. "This was covered in grass so high you could hide in it! There were rocks and pebbles and tree stumps, saplings, and who knows what else. Now it's fertile farm land again. With no machinery either, just hard work and dedication."

"Yet I still have a long way to go. From here on out I not only have to progress like I have been, but each plot I open up is one more I have to take care of while still doing everything else… I'll hit my limit before long, and I think I'm already there."

"But you have help now." Abigail cheerfully fired back at me. "Even though I'll be working again in a few weeks, I can still help out here… Maybe two days a week. If I do that, then you could start taking weekends off."

"But you work too."

"So does Leah." Abigail started going again, trying to uproot a sapling. "She could do her artsy stuff most of the week and help out every now and then too."

I tried to figure out why she would say that. "What are you getting at, Abby?"

Abigail paused again and took a breath. "I'm not saying I'm completely okay with it yet, but… You know, the thing with my family…" She started trying to uproot the little tree again, in earnest this time. "Just because dad isn't my real dad, doesn't mean he's not my dad… you know?" I nodded and waited for her to continue. "So… even though the situation is weird, we're still family… Maybe…" She hesitated and then looked at me for real. "Maybe this weird little poly thing can actually work?"

I didn't know what to say at that moment. A huge wave of relief washed over me, paired with several other emotions that all happened at the same time. Not being able to form any words, I simply moved over to her and gave Abigail a very tight hug. "…Thank you."

The girl let her shovel fall and hugged me back just as tight. "I-I expect a lot of attention." I nodded at her several times. "And… And I might get jealous at first until I'm used to it…" Again, a nod. "Just be honest with me… always."

I pulled back and smiled, resting my forehead against hers. "Always. I promise."

"…I'm not really good at things like this." She admitted, looking down a little shyly. "I'm kind of hard headed, and a little bit of a pervert… That okay?"

"Of course."

"Then…" She cleared her throat. "Kim, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Of course!" I hugged her again, burying my face against her neck. "Oh thank Yoba, it's finally over… We have to tell Leah!"

"One thing before that?" Abigail asked as we parted.

"Yeah, anything." She stepped forward and kissed me. It was a little aggressive, her hands grabbing around my waist and pulling me close. I didn't know what to think at first, but returned it shortly after. The kiss turned into two, and then three. Finally, the girl in my arms pulled me closer and opened up her mouth to mine. I felt my knees give out a little and leaned on her for support. My eyes were closed and I lost myself in the light taste in my mouth and soft tongue as we clumsily tried to figure out how to properly do it. After what seemed like several minutes, a soft voice cleared their throat beside us. We pulled apart slowly and looked over to see Leah smiling at us with a hand on her hip.

"Well," she spoke as we both blushed darkly. "I know Kim would tell me the bad news before making out with you, so I'm assuming it's a good thing?"

Abigail held my hand and waved it lightly towards Leah. "I just asked her to be my girlfriend, she said yes… soooo." She let go of my hand and placed it on my butt, pushing me towards Leah. "Your turn."

I smiled up at Leah, as she was a bit taller than me. The artist looked exceptionally proud at that moment, and gave me a soft, gentle hug. "I'll do everything I can for you, okay?" I nodded in the hug and held onto her. "It'll be a little weird at first, but I have faith in all of us." We pulled apart slightly and she caressed my cheek with her palm. "I'm so glad I met you, my little piece of art." I blushed darkly at the compliment and fluttered my eyes closed as she moved in to kiss me gently. It was different than Abigail's, but felt the same deep inside me. She was gentle, pulling me in and making me melt with how careful she was in expressing herself. After a few moments, she pulled back and smiled happily at me. "And I just came over to say hi, too. Wow!"

"So," Abigail clapped her hands together once and walked over to up. "Leah." We parted and Abigail stood in front of her. "I hope this won't be awkward, but…" She reached up and wrapped her hands around Leah's neck, leaning up and forward to kiss her soundly. Leah's eyes widened and I held back a gasp, hand over my mouth. After several moments, Abigail pulled back and I saw her tongue retract back into her mouth. "Wow… you taste a little like sawdust…"

Leah tried to gather herself. "I… Wow, Abigail!" She fanned herself and laughed lightly. "Uhm… Just to be clear here, I'm not weirded out or anything but… you know we're just sharing Kim's love, so you and I don't have to… you know."

"We…don't?" Abigail looked like a deer caught in headlights as both myself and Leah shook our heads. "Oh! I mean of course we don't! That'd be silly! Hahahahah!" she turned away and hung her head. "I'll just go die now."

Leah laughed teasingly and hugged the girl from behind. "Hey, thank you. It really means a lot that you were willing to go that extra step."

Abigail sighed and looked back at the braided girl. "Sorry if I made you uncomfortable."

"Not at all." Leah gave Abigail a light kiss to her forehead. "We have to be really open to make this work. Besides…" She looked over at me and grinned before whispering something in Abigail's ear that I couldn't make out.

Abigail turned a dark crimson and looked at Leah as if she had just suggested that we all strip naked and go skinny dipping at the beach. "Y-yeah, I guess we eventually would…"

Leah shrugged and blushed a little as well. The purple haired girl exhaled and tried to clear her head. "Okay! That comes later. Now, here we are… so what now?"

"Nothing?" I suggested simply. "It's not like we've really been avoiding things, right? Now we are just official?" The way they both looked at me made me second guess myself. "…Right?"

Leah answered first. "Honestly? I still _really_ want to draw and paint you more. I've held back a little to let Abigail get some more time with you, but now that we're official…" She made a cute face. "Come over, strip, and lay on my bed sometime?"

I laughed at that. "Okay, you got it. Tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow is great!" Leah cheered. "I'll prepare this time!"

I giggled lightly. "Abby? Are you holding back?"

"Uhm…"

Leah poked her. "Honesty."

Abigail nodded and looked back over at me, a little shy. "Uhm… selfies? Like… the naked kind?"

I felt my cheeks burn. "Whoa! I, uhm…okay, wow…"

"I told you I wouldn't stop wanting to see you…"

I blushed even more, almost at a loss for words. "Top only, is that okay?"

"More than!" She answered quickly, excitedly.

I looked away from them, still embarrassed out of my mind. "What is it with you two and wanting to see me naked, geeze…"

Leah snorted and put an arm around me. "You're hot, just accept it. Speaking of, it _is_ hot and I hate the heat. Let's get something to nibble and talk a bit about things?"

"Talking is good." I confirmed, glancing at Abigail.

"Food and chatting it is then." She got on the other side of me and took my hand. Leah grabbed my other and I finally let it sink in that this was now a thing. And I really liked it.

* * *

It was only a few days since we three became a couple, but the word has spread around town like wildfire. I got a few looks from some of the older people in the village, but the ones I had really became close with only gave me teasing smiles. Haley, after visiting her to drop off a request she made on the bullion board, had many questions for me. I spent a good part of my afternoon with her and even helped a bit in her homemade darkroom. The blonde was working hard, and I was impressed. Even her attitude to it had changed and despite being hard work, she looked happy to be doing it herself.

Now I found myself standing in front of my mirror for the fifth time. I had on a dark blue short sleeve shirt with a cartoony sheep on the front. A pair of semi loose jeans covered my legs and of course my bracelet. After turning to observe myself a few times, I sighed and started pulling it off. "I haven't done this in years," I muttered to myself, going through the closet to pick out another outfit. "Mom would have a fit if she saw me…"

Thinking back to my parents was a little odd. They were due for a visit, and I would have to explain my relationship to them. This was _not_ something I was looking forward to and decided to push that off as long as I could. As I got a new outfit, I stood back in front of the mirror and tried to ignore the Junimo who were running all around me and playing on my discarded clothes. "Okay, Kim, once more." I encouraged myself. The bleached white jean shorts were tugged up and buttoned. They accented my butt nicely so I decided right there that I would pair whatever top with them. After that I got a three-quarter sleeve shirt and looked at it. The shirt itself was a light grayish white, and had the words _I AM CUTE_ written on it with a heart in between each word. It was an older shirt, but one of my favorites. After putting it on, I twirled again for myself.

"Not bad." I nodded to myself and looked at my friends. "What do you guys think? Am I cute?" They all waved their arms up and shook them at me, which I took as a good sign. A pair of low top shoes were grabbed and after rooting around for ages trying to find my no-show socks, I put them on. My hair was done up in a ponytail again and I used my favorite scrunchie to keep it in place. "Makeup?" I asked aloud, getting some squeaks and cute sounds.

My supply was woefully short, but was to the point. Pulling back from my days at JoJa corp. I did myself up and added a light touch of lipstick. I then had to do my nails for the first time since I got here, and found some earrings that I had stashed in a small box on the vanity. Now looking again, I realized I was actually cute after all. I hadn't done myself up since I became a farmer, not counting the posing for Leah.

Now that I was ready for the night, I sprayed myself down with some perfume and went outside. It was a little windy, and I had to hold my hair in place so I wouldn't eat it while whistling for Okami. Once my horse came back to me, I hopped on bareback and rode off towards town. The sun would be setting soon, which meant the moonlight jellies would be here soon. I didn't want to miss this for the world, as everyone I knew was talking about it for weeks now.

The ride was a little longer than normal, as we were going to the nearby beach. I stopped a little before the sand and hopped off my horse. Giving him a pat, I told him to have fun exploring the area but not to go too far off. The beach was cool now, and the wind blowing from the ocean made me get instant goose bumps all over my body. I rubbed my arms as I walked, heading over to where Gus was setting up one of his cookers. "Hey There!" I called to him, purposely standing by the grill to steal some of its heat.

"Kim, welcome!" He greeted with a smile. "This is your first time, huh?" I nodded at him and shivered as the wind picked up again for a moment. I had to grab my ponytail as it flung out, almost catching fire from the charcoal burning. "I can tell, you're not dressed for it! This is the last day of summer, it'll be chilly from here on out, and the beach is even worse."

"Noted." I hopped in place a few times, getting a laugh. "I didn't know you would be catering again, I could have given you some stuff to make it easier on you."

"It's mostly meat," He held his hand over the grates to check the heat. "It'll be a while. Why don't you head over to the docks? Willy closes them off to everyone except the townspeople, so we have a front row seat. The tourist generally line the shore. You're more than just a new comer now, you're like family to the town, so you're welcome!"

"Aww, thank you!" I smiled brightly at him. Gus really was a sweetheart. I gave a small wave and moved over to the docks, stepping over the "Pelican Town residents only" sign hanging from a rope around the entrance. Several people were already gathered, including Shane who was leaning against the fishing shop drinking a beer. As I passed him, I reached into his cooler and stole one, giving a wink as I did so. He gave me a snort, but I still saw the corners of his lips twitch upwards as well. Ever since I started giving him and Marnie some peppers in the summer, he's warmed up to me and started showing his own kindness by sending me treats and letting me use his JoJa employee discount when I did have to shop at their store.

Emily waved to me as she set up some lawn chairs at her little section of the pier. Haley was nose deep in a magazine of some kind, bundled up already to keep herself warm as the sunlight slowly died off in the distance. Robin and her family were all together as well, sitting with their feet hanging off the dock. Sebastian was a little farther away from them smoking. When I met his eye he looked down at his cigarette and put it out, making me grin at him. As I passed, Robin offered me a place with her family since I lived alone. I gave a polite decline, saying I was meeting up with my girls later. She gave me a teasing grin while Demetrious just shook his head.

I found a section that was empty and carefully sat down on the weathered wood. After crossing my legs, I reached up to try and hold my hair as best as I could while the wind blew around me. It was cold, and the light spray from the water below made me shiver. Still, it was very lovely out here. I felt really privileged to be on the dock, as other people were all gathering around on the beach. Harvey passed by me and told me to stay warm, even giving me a little hand warmer pouch to help. Although I said I was fine, as soon as he left me I snapped it and shook, trying to absorb the heat from it.

"I knew you'd be silly." A new voice made me smile and felt my cheeks warm up a bit as Leah draped a rather large blanket over me. I wanted to snuggle into it instantly, but allowed her to sit by me first so we could share. "It's fall now, it gets really cold here by the water."

"I noticed." Scooting closer to her, I shared my hand warmer pouch and brought my legs up to cross so the water wouldn't splash on them anymore. "Talk about sudden temperature changes, it felt like only two weeks ago I was complaining about the heat."

"If you think that's bad, you should see winter. There is snow on the ground almost non top." Leah had brought a little cooler with her and retrieved a soda from it. "When you first got here, it was just barely melted all the way. If you were a week earlier then you could have seen it."

"I'll see it soon enough. I'm not going anywhere." I sipped on the beer I stole from Shane and looked out into the distance. "So these moonlight jellyfish are pretty popular, huh?"

"Very." Leah looked back at all the tourist. "Every year they come by here, and stop by for an hour or so before going back out into the ocean. Really can't describe it and do it justice."

Leah leaned on me a little more and looked out over the water. "I've seen them a few times now, but this is my first time with someone. I normally just pay my respects to another summer gone by."

"Very romantic and artsy." I commented, getting a giggle.

"I hate the heat, but everything is so lush and green. It's refreshing." She met my eyes and gave me a rather intimate look. "When it gets cold, feel free to stop by anytime and snuggle up under a blanket with me. We could drink some wine to warm up."

I blushed hard, knowing where that would probably end up going. "M-maybe." She gave a light pout. "Okay, I will. Promise."

"Good." She nodded contently. "Have you seen Abigail?"

"Not yet." I looked around a bit. "I hope this doesn't cause any bad moments since Rasmodius is here…"

"Rather not think about that." Leah shook her head. "So! Fall time! You have your farm ready?"

"Yup!" I was rather proud of myself for it too. "Everything is already planted, mana infused, and growing away. Even my friends are pretty impressed."

"Your farmer buddies you met at the market?"

"Mmhmm. Riley has become a pretty fun person to talk to. We talk once a week or so about how our farms are doing. Molly is a blast. She's really far ahead of me with workers and everything helping her. There are a few others, but not sure you've met them yet?"

"Not that I can recall." At that moment both of our phones made their chimes. Looking down, I struggled to pull my phone from the tight pocket of my shorts.

 _Abigail: Running a bit late. I'll be there soon!_

Leah replied slightly before me.

 _Leah: I'm snuggling with Kim by the water. If you don't hurry, I'll steal your share too!_

 _Kim: Take your time, see you soon!_

 _Abigail: Don't joke about that! I had to fight with mom and dad just to be 'allowed' to be alone with her!_

"Poor girl." Leah snickered. "My parents were massively over protective when I was younger. My daddy was one of those that would try to appear all threatening when a boy came to pick me up. How about you?"

"Didn't really date in high school. Not really popular." I shook my head. "But I'm sure he'd freak out if I told him I had two girlfriends right now…"

We watched the sun set into the water for a long time before we were finally called over to enjoy some food. As we walked over to the large tables we finally saw Abigail coming toward the crowd as well. Her parents were hanging behind slightly and we all three attacked the free buffet before sitting at one of the tables.

Sebastian and Sam were already ahead of us, chowing down on some burgers and fries. We greeted them and started in ourselves. I was eating more and more lately, but thankfully my body was controlling it all into mana regeneration instead of it going straight to my hips. I had lost a little more weight and was starting to get some seriously toned arms and legs. I wasn't near what my buddy Riley was, but I was still impressed with myself.

Leah was, once again, teased at her vegetarian meal consisting of tofu and black bean burger wrapped in lettuce with extra fries and meatless chili- something I considered an act against Yoba. Abigail was going at some ribs, not really caring that she had some sauce around her mouth. Myself and Sebastian were the smart ones, grabbing barbeque pork sandwiches.

"Ever get the feeling you're being watched?" Abigail asked after a moment, wiping her mouth down. "I feel like Jodi is eyeing me."

Sam looked a little embarrassed. "She's… kind of off put by your…" He motioned to all three of the girls. "Just a little old fashioned."

"Bleh," I took a long drink of the soda I now had. "I've had worse."

"Not very happy, though…" Abigail continued eating, although a lot slower now.

Sam tried to make it a little better. "Just give her some time. She's a nice person. I don't think I could understand either, but hey, I wish you the best."

"Thanks." Leah tried to push it away as well. "It's a little hard to comprehend. Took us a few months ourselves, and it's still…"

"New?" Abigail offered.

"New." I agreed. "It's definitely new." I poked at my food now, a little less hungry.

Sebastian looked at me and then to Abigail. After a moment he sighed. "I think it's really cool." This made us all look at the normally quiet one. "You three, good job. Better than a crit on a D20."

I snorted in a laugh. Leave it to Sebastian to make it all better. My snort caused Leah to laugh in her drink, which in turn made Abigail almost choke on her food. When it was all said in done, Sam was almost rolling in tears laughing at us. This thankfully broke the awkward tension and eased us all back into good spirits.

By the time we were done eating it was getting pretty dark. I was already pretty excited, and the loud chatter that was coming from everywhere was really starting to make me really want to see what this was all about. As we claimed the spot by where Leah's blanket was, we had a few friends come over as well.

Penny was near me, giving me that apologetic look that instantly told me Pam was already quite passed drunk. I gave her a nod and a wink, which eased her up and let her join our little group without question. Haley also came over, muttering something about an ex-boyfriend who wouldn't leave her alone on the beach. Before I could ask, she took out a rather expensive looking camera and faced the water, saying something about being her first pictures to develop herself in her new darkroom.

I stood a little ahead of everyone, looking excitedly out into the ocean. Mayor Lewis had a candle on a little boat that he was letting out into the waters. We all watched as it went out, came back in a little, and back out more as the tide got a hold of it. At first nothing happened. I began to worry a little, pondering why the sea wasn't glowing like I had heard before. Leah must have noticed because I felt her take my hand and give a reassuring squeeze.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, I saw the first bit of glowing in the water. I couldn't help myself and I got on my hands and knees, peering over the docks at the bioluminescent jellyfish that were starting to swim around. "No way…" I breathed out as a large green one swam around underneath me.

Everyone was murmuring now, pointing and taking pictures. I knew I should take a few myself, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from them. Little baby blue ones were swimming in circles, inspecting the beach. Larger ones were swimming casually as if they knew they were going to come here in the first place. They just kept coming, swarming the beach area until it looked like the whole ocean was glowing. Abigail sat down next to me and patted my back. I took the hint and sat down as well, letting Leah take my other side and wrap the blanket around us. The group had split up now, each looking into the ocean on their own. I became lost in the sight, my mind racing to figure out how they were doing that. After a while I could finally relax and began to enjoy the company of my two girlfriends. They were each leaning on me slightly, Leah's arm around my shoulders and Abigail's around my waist. I felt a little spoiled at that moment, but didn't care too much. The blanket was protecting us from view and offered a little privacy on the otherwise crowded area.

Before even an hour passed, the jellyfish were starting to thin out and I felt a little sad. "Aw… They'll be gone… I wanted them to stay…"

Leah chuckled lightly at me. "They'll be back. They come every year. I like to think the babies this time will be the adults next year."

"Yeah, and we can watch it next year as well. Together." Abigail nudged me and smiled, giving me a loving look. "Now that we're more open about things."

"Mmhmm." I took the hint she was getting at and blushed darkly. "A-Abby… people can see…"

"I don't care." She leaned forward again and I bit my lower lip nervously. Leah gave my shoulder a squeeze and I let my eyes close, accepting the kiss from Abigail. It was short and soft, making me feel a little funny in my stomach. When she pulled back I was encouraged to lean against Leah, who kissed me as well. Now I heard cheers behind me from Sam and laughter from other townspeople. Without wasting time, I pulled the blanket over my head and tried to hide, blushing so hard I felt my ears burn.

When the jellyfish finally began to become hard to see, people began to pack up and head home. I stayed on the docks with my girls for the longest time, ignoring Pierre calling for Abigail to come with him back home. After a while he came up and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Abby, it's time."

"I'm… staying with Kim tonight," Abigail declared after a moment.

I looked at her in shock. That was not something I expected her to say. Pierre seemed to read my face because he didn't seem too upset with me at the moment. "Abby, I don't know if you should-"

"Dad," She looked up at him. "I'm not going to get pregnant." The words made me instantly want to scream and hide, but Pierre looked like he just stepped on a landmine.

"I-I know that…I was just… implying that… maybe it's a little early…"

"Dad. I'll be home tomorrow. Sweet dreams, see you then." She gave him _that look_ that clearly told him now wasn't the time to be trying to protect her. The older man looked a little hurt and embarrassed, but cleared his throat.

"Very well then. Leah, Kim, have a good night and safe trip home." We both nodded and I caught his eye when he looked at me. He seemed a little defeated, but still respected me enough to give me a look as well. Mustering up my courage, I smiled at him as best I could and leaned over to kiss Abigail's hair. He looked like he accepted it and turned around, muttering to himself something about his little girl.

"Sooo… My place?" I asked softly to no one, tapping my palms against my knees.

"Sounds good." Abigail agreed.

Leah was blushing now as well. "I'd like that too."

"Yeah…" I felt my heart threatening to jump out of my throat at that moment. "Let's go to my place."


End file.
